Apple reportedly developing AI updates for Xcode and Spotlight
What's the story
Apple is enhancing its Xcode programming software and Spotlight search with artificial intelligence (AI) features, as per Bloomberg. The tech giant aims to introduce new generative AI capabilities for Xcode to third-party developers in 2024. The company is also considering implementing AI in consumer products such as automatic playlist creation in Apple Music, AI chatbot-like search facility for Spotlight, and slideshows in Keynote.
Improvement
Search to get an upgrade
The AI search upgrade for Spotlight will permit iOS and macOS users to make natural language requests, similar to ChatGPT. They could get weather reports or "operate facilities deep inside apps."
Specs
AI-powered code completion tool similar to GitHub Copilot
Similar to Microsoft's GitHub Copilot and Amazon's CodeWhisperer, Apple's programming tool will use a large language model (LLM) to predict and complete code strings. Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella announced that GitHub Copilot had a million paying users as of November 2023. While Microsoft plans to reveal more about AI for developers at Build 2024 in May, Apple may disclose its AI plans at the yearly WWDC event for developers later this year.
Future
Tim Cook confirms more generative AI features coming
Although Apple CEO Tim Cook has been cautious about generative AI, compared to Google and Microsoft leaders, he confirmed in an investor call that more AI features are coming this year. Bloomberg sources revealed that Apple executives showcased many AI facilities for Xcode to the company's board last year. Apple has also rolled out an open-source machine learning framework called MLX, an AI animator named Keyframer, and a text-to-image editing AI model (MGIE), demonstrating its dedication to advancing AI technology.