Apple Reshuffles Robotics Team Leadership Amid AI Challenges

Apple to Strip Secret Robotics Unit From AI Chief Weeks After Moving Siri

Apple Inc. will remove its secret robotics unit from the command of its artificial intelligence chief, the latest shake-up in response to the company's AI struggles. Apple plans to relocate the robotics team from John Giannandrea's AI organization to the hardware division later this month, according to people with knowledge of the move. That will place it under Senior Vice President John Ternus, who oversees hardware engineering, said the people, who asked not to be identified because the change isn't public.

Apple removing key robotics team from John Giannandrea's oversight - 9to5Mac

Apple is preparing another leadership shakeup, this time for its secretive robotics team. Bloomberg reports that Apple is shifting its robotics team from AI chief John Giannandrea to John Ternus, its Senior Vice President of Hardware Engineering. This move comes just a month after Apple removed Siri from Giannandrea's oversight after Tim Cook "lost confidence in the ability" of the former Google executive to "execute on product development." Siri is now led by Mike Rockwell, the creator of Apple Vision Pro, who reports to software boss Craig Federighi. Bloomberg's Mark Gurman reports that Apple will move the robotics team to Ternus's purview "later this month." Ternus currently leads hardware engineering for almost all Apple's products, including the iPhone, iPad, Mac, and Vision Pro. Ternus is also a leading candidate to eventually replace Tim Cook as Apple CEO. The robotics team at Apple is working on multiple products, including a tabletop iPad-like device with a robotic arm that moves the display around. The team is led by Kevin Lynch, who also worked on the Apple Watch and Apple's failed electric car project. In addition to the robotic iPad, the team is working on more advanced projects, such as a "mobile robot that can follow users around their homes." In addition to the robotics team led by Giannandrea, a separate team working on "robotics and smart home technologies" also exists inside Apple. That team, led by Brian Lynch and Matt Costello, was already under the purview of Ternus. By shifting Giananndrea's robotics responsibilities to Ternus, both teams are now under a single leader. The move also means that Ternus now has control over key AI teams, Bloomberg reports: The relocation of Lynch's unit is also notable because it gives Ternus control over key AI operating system and algorithms teams, groups not typically managed by the hardware engineering department. Ternus briefly oversaw the Vision Pro software unit -- until Rockwell moved with that team to the software engineering organization. That coincided with the Siri management shift last month. With this change, Giannandrea and his AI/ML group will have "more time to focus on underlying artificial intelligence technology." Bloomberg says that Giannandrea hasn't indicated he is leaving the company:

Apple's Secret Robotics Team Gets New Leadership

Apple is removing another project from AI chief John Giannandrea, and he will no longer oversee Apple's secret robotics division, according to Bloomberg. After Apple failed to deliver promised Apple Intelligence Siri features on time under Giannandrea's leadership, Apple asked Vision Pro chief Mike Rockwell to oversee the Siri team and future Siri development instead. Now the robotics team will make a similar move, transitioning to the hardware division where robotics development will be overseen by Apple senior vice president John Ternus instead of Giannandrea. Giannandrea continues to head up Apple's AI and machine learning efforts, and changing the robotics team leadership will give his team more time to focus on new artificial intelligence features. Giannandrea has hundreds fewer engineers to manage, and the shift is a clear indication that Apple leadership does not feel that he can lead multiple teams. Apple is making major management changes in order to further prioritize Apple Intelligence, as it needs to catch up with Google, OpenAI, Perplexity, and other AI companies that are leagues ahead in AI development. Kevin Lynch, who oversaw the development of the Apple Watch and Apple's now-canceled car, is leading the robotics team. Apple has several robotics projects in the works, and a tabletop robot with an arm that can move around an iPad-style display could be the first device to come from the robot team. Apple is also planning for a more mobile robot that would be more like an iPad on wheels able to carry out simple tasks, place calls, and answer queries. Ternus is a top Apple exec and he has worked on some of Apple's biggest products, overseeing the hardware engineering of the iPhone, iPad, Mac, and other devices. He already oversees another hardware engineering team working on robotics and smart home technologies, and Bloomberg suggests that Apple's move to merge the two robotics teams could indicate that Apple is ramping up robot development.

Apple's secret robotics team is moving from the AI division to the hardware group

A Bloomberg report says the team, which isn't public, will be under new management as Apple struggles to catch up in AI. The executive shakeups at Apple continue this week with a new Bloomberg report saying that the company's robotics team will be under new management. The team, which isn't public but isn't exactly a secret, has been working under John Giannandrea's machine learning and AI group. We wrote recently about an interesting research paper and video from the team showing expressive "emotion" movements with an experimental AI-powered lamp. It's an impressive demonstration of some of the things the group has been working on, likely in advance of a future rumored tabletop assistant with a robotic arm and iPad-like display "face." With advanced AI, speakers, microphones, cameras, and robotic actuators, this is meant to be a sort of helpful home companion. Now, this robotics team is moving from the AI/ML group to the hardware division, which is overseen by Senior Vice President John Ternus. This could be seen as simply a move to reduce the responsibilities of Giannandrea's group, taking away the impetus to build products and letting the group focus on the underlying artificial intelligence and machine learning technologies that are used throughout the company. More of a pure specialized R&D group, in other words. The Siri team was moved out of Giannandrea's group earlier this year after the well-publicized failure to meet deadlines and keep up with the digital assistants of rivals. But it might also mean that the project is shifting out of the lab to into serious product development. Once a core concept has been proven, it takes a long time to engineer a real mass-produced product out of it, especially to the quality level one expects from Apple. This shift to the hardware division may be an indication that this work is now underway.

Apple shifts robotics team away from Giannandrea's AI organization to prioritize hardware | AppleInsider

A new report suggests that Apple CEO Tim Cook has lost faith in his AI/ML chief John Giannandrea and is shifting the robotics team to hardware headed by John Ternus. Apple has been rearranging some of its teams after making a publicly embarrassing move to delay contextual Apple Intelligence features. The Siri team moved to be placed under Mike Rockwell, the Apple Vision Pro chief. It seems that wasn't the only internal move planned by Apple, as Bloomberg reports the robotics team is moving out from under the AI/ML organization. It will instead be under the hardware division, which is led by John Ternus. These moves haven't changed John Giannandrea's position as SVP of AI and ML at Apple, but it indicates Apple CEO Tim Cook is taking a different strategy with the refocus. It seems Giannandrea's team will build the underlying models that will run future technologies, including the robots and Siri, but work independently of the other teams. However, rumors from the sources providing these details suggest Cook could be planning a total break-up of the AI and ML team. It could mean Giannandrea being assigned to a new position or leaving the company altogether. The motivations of these moves aren't known and can only be guessed at beyond the obvious catalyst of the embarrassing AI delays. Cook could be trying to ensure Giannandrea and his team aren't spread too thin while ensuring robotics hardware is prioritized and Siri is developed independently. On the other hand, the AI and ML team could be seen as redundant as Apple rethinks Apple Intelligence and its role at the company. Rather than treating AI as a separate product line, it could be being seen as an underlying framework. Think app versus operating system. For example, the robotic arm will rely on AI for specific kinds of interactions and data, but the robot itself isn't AI hardware. The same goes for Siri, which would call out to AI tools for answers and summaries, but itself isn't an LLM, not yet anyway. Whether that approach requires a specific team dedicated to building the underlying models, or if each department can build their own models, remains to be seen. Time will reveal Apple's strategy as more moves are made public and whether Giannandrea sticks around.

Report: Apple Removes Robotics Unit From Purview of AI Chief | PYMNTS.com

Apple is reportedly making another organizational change as it aims to accelerate the development of its artificial intelligence (AI) offerings. The company will remove its "secret robotics unit" from the purview of its AI chief, John Giannandrea, weeks after doing the same with its Siri voice assistant in March, Bloomberg reported Thursday (April 24), citing unnamed sources. Apple did not immediately reply to PYMNTS' request for comment. According to the Bloomberg report, the robotics unit will move to Apple's hardware division and be placed under Senior Vice President John Ternus. Giannandrea will continue to run most of the company's AI efforts, and the removal of the robotics unit will allow his group to focus on that technology, the report said. The robotics team reportedly aims to create a new product category for Apple by using AI to power devices, per the report. The team is working on a tabletop robot that can move an iPad-like display, and has discussed building a mobile robot that would include videoconferencing capabilities, the report said. It was reported in February that Apple is exploring both humanoid and nonhumanoid robots for smart home applications. In April 2024, it was reported that Apple was considering entering the personal robotics market as it looked for new opportunities for growth after ending its electric vehicle project. As for the company's recent organizational changes, it was reported March 20 that when Siri was removed from the oversight of Giannandrea, it was placed under the leadership of Vision Pro creator Mike Rockwell. The leadership changes associated with that move came after an annual offsite meeting of Apple's senior leaders, the "Top 100," at which the company's AI efforts were a key topic of discussion. On Tuesday (April 22), it was reported that Apple's work on Siri will be led by managers who developed Vision Pro, as Rockwell is bringing members of the Vision Pro management team to Siri, replacing or demoting previous managers of the voice assistant business. While Vision Pro has not been a commercial hit, Rockwell's leadership of the development of the device showed his ability to produce a well-regarded operating system and product.