Apple's AI Strategy: Tim Cook Defends 'Not First, But Best' Approach

Apple Intelligence is "not first, but best" Tim Cook says

Apple CEO Tim Cook, in a recent interview, addressed criticisms about the company's perceived delay in adopting artificial intelligence. Speaking with Ben Cohen of The Wall Street Journal, Cook outlined why Apple has taken its time in rolling out AI features. Competitors like Google Gemini and OpenAI's ChatGPT seem to be speeding ahead in the race for AI dominance. Even Anthropic's Claude is now on iPad. Then there are Mistral, Meta AI and more... "There is one idea that encapsulates the approach to innovation that makes all of it possible," Cook said. "Not first, but best." This philosophy, he explained, has been central to Apple's development process, whether it's AI or other innovations. "If we can only do one, there's no doubt around here. If you talk to 100 people, 100 of them would tell you: It's about being the best." As the iPhone 16 launch spotlighted Apple Intelligence, many industry insiders and critics have noted the company's relatively late entry into AI compared to competitors. However, Cook pushed back against this narrative, insisting that Apple's deliberate pace is intentional. Cook elaborated that Apple Intelligence will bring transformative changes for users: "Profoundly different," he said, comparing the AI advancement to revolutionary Apple innovations like the iPod's click wheel and the iPhone's touch interface. "I think we'll look back and it will be one of these air pockets that happened to get you on a different technology curve." Cook also touched on Apple's Vision products, acknowledging that the $3,500 Vision Pro is currently a niche item. He admitted that it's primarily an "early-adopter product" at this stage, designed for users who want to experience tomorrow's technology today. "At $3,500, it's not a mass-market product," he said. "Right now, it's an early-adopter product. People who want to have tomorrow's technology today -- that's who it's for. Fortunately, there's enough people who are in that camp that it's exciting." Despite its limited reach now, Cook is confident in its long-term potential, noting that other iconic Apple products, like the iPhone and AirPods, didn't achieve success overnight. "It doesn't occur overnight. None of these did." Cook's remarks reflect Apple's long-standing philosophy of focusing on creating the best products, even if it means not being the first to market.

Tim Cook has four words for those who think Apple Intelligence is late - Softonic

The race to dominate artificial intelligence is in full swing, and many believe that Apple has arrived late. Apple's CEO, Tim Cook, has four words for those who wish for more from the company's pace of innovation: "Not first, but best." These four words, according to Cook, summarize the philosophy that has guided Apple for decades and continues to shape its approach towards AI and other future innovations. In an interview with The Wall Street Journal, Cook delved into this idea, explaining that Apple's priority is not to be the first to adopt new technologies, but to be the best at implementing them. For him, the true key lies in offering products that genuinely improve people's lives. "If we have to choose between being the first or being the best, the answer is clear: we will always strive to be the best", Cook stated. This approach has been a constant in Apple's history. The company was not the first to launch a smartphone, a digital music player, or wireless headphones, but in each of these cases, it redefined the market with products that made a difference. Now, with the launch of Apple Intelligence, Cook claims that history is repeating itself. Although some may consider that the arrival of Apple Intelligence is late, Cook disagrees. According to him, this technology has the potential to profoundly transform our lives. Cook already mentioned while strolling through Central Park talking about hot dogs, how he has started using Apple Intelligence to summarize the thousands of emails he receives from customers every day. For Apple's CEO, AI is not just another tool, but a technology that will completely change our interaction with our devices in the same way the iPod and iPhone did in their time. "I believe we will look back and see that Apple Intelligence was one of those turning points that put you on a new technological curve." A recent example of how Apple does not rush to launch products, but rather focuses on quality and long-term vision, is the Apple Vision Pro. In the interview, Tim Cook mentions that, despite being a product aimed at a very specific audience due to its high price, he believes it has the potential to become a long-term success. "It is a product for those who want tomorrow's technology today," he commented, acknowledging that, as was the case with the iPhone or AirPods, its success will not be immediate, but time will prove its value. It is natural that as users we want to have the latest news today. We talk about Apple Intelligence, but also about next year's iPhones, and much more. This is where companies must shape their strategy and take the right steps, and in this field, Cook remains firm in his philosophy: quality and long-term innovation always prevail over speed. For Apple, the important thing is not to be the first to arrive, but to be the best in what it offers, and with Apple Intelligence, the company is ready to make a difference in all our lives.

Cook says Apple wasn't first with AI, but will be the best

Ahead of it rolling out to users, Tim Cook says that Apple Intelligence is already changing lives -- including his own. Apple has been reported to be as much as two years behind the rest of the artificial intelligence industry, and CEO Tim Cook does not care. On the one hand, Apple has actually been doing AI under the name Machine Learning for at least a decade, but on the other, Apple doesn't look to be first. "We weren't the first to do intelligence," Cook told the Wall Street Journal in a new interview. "But we've done it in a way that we think is the best for the customer." "We're perfectly fine with not being first," he continues, speaking not just of Apple Intelligence but all of the company's efforts. "As it turns out, it takes a while to get it really great." "It takes a lot of iteration. It takes worrying about every detail. Sometimes, it takes a little longer to do that," he continued. "We would rather come out with that kind of product and that kind of contribution to people versus running to get something out first." "If we can do both, that's fantastic," says Cook. "But if we can only do one, there's no doubt around here. If you talk to 100 people, 100 of them would tell you: It's about being the best." In the case of Apple Intelligence, Cook says that he is using its summaries extensively. He now relies on the Apple Intelligence summaries of his email inbox, and says that has changed his daily habits. "If I can save time here and there," says Cook, "it adds up to something significant across a day, a week, a month. It's changed my life. It really has." Cook is of course just one person, and he's also one person who gets a lot of email. But he maintains that the benefits he has seen already will be the same for everyone -- and that it will make life different. "Profoundly different," he said. "I think we'll look back [at Apple Intelligence] and it will be one of these air pockets that happened to get you on a different technology curve." Cook doesn't mean he expects everyone to have their lives changed right away. "But it will happen. It will happen for all of us," he concludes Apple has said that Apple Intelligence will be rolling out in stages, and in different territories, over the next few months. It's expected that the first major release will be on October 28, 2024.

Tim Cook defends Apple coming late to AI with four words - 9to5Mac

But Apple CEO Tim Cook argues in a new interview that he doesn't see it that way, and says that the company has taken its time with AI for the same reason it has with every innovation ... Cook spoke with the WSJ's Ben Cohen. There is one idea that encapsulates the approach to innovation that makes all of it possible -- and it's maybe the closest thing to a grand unified theory of Apple. It's a philosophy of just four words that describe Apple's past, present and definitely its future. Four words that help explain why this was the year the company plowed into spatial computing and artificial intelligence. During one of those epochal years when it feels like everything is about to change again, I heard them over and over, in conversation with Apple executives and Cook himself: Not first, but best. Cook elaborated on those four words in a lengthy interview this summer at Caffè Macs on Apple's campus, where the steady and typically reserved CEO explained that his company's top priority is delivering great products that enrich people's lives. Cook says that sometimes you can be first and best, but any time you have to choose between the two, there's only one answer. If we can only do one, there's no doubt around here. If you talk to 100 people, 100 of them would tell you: It's about being the best. Cook famously makes a point of reading emails from customers, and told Jimmy Fallon last month that he now uses Apple Intelligence to summarize these. "It's changed my life," he says. "It really has." Asked how much it will change the lives of Apple customers, he has no doubt. "Profoundly different," he said. He puts Apple Intelligence in the same pantheon of innovative breakthroughs as the iPod's click wheel and the iPhone's touch interface. "I think we'll look back and it will be one of these air pockets that happened to get you on a different technology curve," he says. Cook believes the same is true of Apple Vision products. While even the CEO mostly uses it as a very expensive way to watch movies, and he admits it's currently a niche product, he says none of Apple's successful product lines took off overnight.

Tim Cook is confident in Apple's AI future | Digital Trends

If you own an iPhone 16 series, you likely purchased it to be among the first to use Apple Intelligence. However, a month after the latest iPhones were released, this highly anticipated AI suite from the largest company in the world has not yet been released to the public. Tim Cook thinks the wait will be worth it. In a long-ranging interview with The Wall Street Journal, the Apple CEO defends his company's speed at which it is introducing AI into its products. He also sees a bright future for Apple Vision, even though the first product in a likely series of alternate reality devices, the very expensive Apple Vision Pro, has largely failed to catch on with most users. Recommended Videos Of AI, Cook says: "We weren't the first to do intelligence. But we've done it in a way that we think is the best for the customer." To stress this point further, he highlighted Apple Intelligence's new email summaries tool and how it has changed his productivity and daily habits. "It's changed my life," he explains. He's also bold enough to explain that Apple Intelligence will ultimately change how we use his company's products. "Profoundly different," he said. Of the first-generation $3,500 Apple Vision Pro, Cook explains that it was never intended as a mass-market product. Instead, "it's an early-adopter product. People who want to have tomorrow's technology today -- that's who it's for." He also noted that products like iPods, iPhones, and AirPods didn't necessarily find success overnight. Of the Vision Pro, he contends: "Over time, everything gets better, and it too will have its course of getting better and better. Apple Intelligence was announced at the June Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC). Soon after, Apple admitted that the product wouldn't launch with the iPhone 16 series, which it announced last month. Instead, parts of Apple Intelligence will begin rolling out to supported devices before the end of this month, with other features perhaps not arriving until 2025. The new AI tools, which focus on improving user productivity and efficiency, as well as making the overall experience more personal, will eventually be available in each of Apple's product lines. At the start, the tools will be available on late-model iPhones, iPads, and Macs. The Vision Pro arrived in February with mostly good reviews. However, it has almost certainly been held back by its high price, limited battery life, and slow adoption by software developers. We've heard that a lower-priced option could be released as early as next year.

Tim Cook has surprising definitions of 'success' for AI and Vision Pro - 9to5Mac

Two of Apple's biggest bets for the future are Apple Intelligence and the Vision Pro. The former hasn't launched yet, and the latter has received a mixed reception. But in a recent WSJ interview, CEO Tim Cook shared some surprising definitions for how he's viewing 'success' for the two products. In discussing the Vision Pro, Cook called it 'arguably a success today' -- but not by any measure you might expect. Cook didn't claim that the device's sales were great. He instead adeptly dodged the question by saying, "I'd always like to sell more of everything, because ultimately, we want our products to be in as many people's hands as possible. And so obviously I'd like to sell more." He also didn't talk up customer satisfaction, something he's very much been known to do. Instead, Cook acknowledged that Vision Pro will keep on getting better, but defined its success in this way: "Over time, everything gets better, and it too will have its course of getting better and better," Cook says. "I think it's just arguably a success today from an ecosystem-being-built-out point of view." This is a curious quote by Cook, because it very much kicks the can of the Vision Pro's success down the road. Rather than being judged by a normal product's standards, the Vision Pro is a 'success' because it's building out an ecosystem. Taking Apple and its users into a spatial computing future that will some day be a big thing. When it comes to Apple Intelligence, Cook similarly spoke of success in a unique way. Elsewhere in the piece, Cook is said to have repeated the phrase, "Not first, but best" often to his interviewer. However, when getting specific about Apple Intelligence, even Cook's use of 'best' is not quite what you'd expect. "We weren't the first to do intelligence," he says. "But we've done it in a way that we think is the best for the customer." Did you notice the qualifier? Cook acknowledges that Apple isn't first to AI. But despite the 'Not first, but best' mantra, he also isn't claiming that Apple Intelligence is going to be 'best' -- at least not yet. Instead, Apple's focus is on providing AI that's 'best for the customer.' Which is very evident in Apple Intelligence's motto: 'AI for the rest of us.' To Cook, Apple Intelligence's success -- for now -- is less about technically being the best, and more about creating the best product to enrich users' lives. Which is very much in line with Apple's ethos. The company has historically been less concerned with making abstract new tech, and more focused on creating specific products that meet specific needs. Maybe you can attribute Cook's quotes to simply being positive spin. A way for him to claim Apple is winning with its newest offerings. But it could also, perhaps, be the way the company truly views the Vision Pro and Apple Intelligence. Both are investments in the future whose true 'success,' in the traditional meaning of the word, won't arrive until later. What do you make of Cook's definitions of success? Let us know in the comments.

Apple CEO Tim Cook Says Apple Intelligence Will Make Products 'Profoundly Different': New AI Technology Will Get Consumers 'On A Different Technology Curve' - Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL)

Apple CEO Tim Cook is proud of Apple Intelligence and Vision Pro, brushing off skeptics in a recent interview. Apple Intelligence is one of the most highly anticipated product releases from Apple Inc AAPL in years and has already changed the life of its CEO Tim Cook for the better. Cook believes the release of Apple Intelligence will go down as one of the biggest technology releases in Apple history. The Apple CEO recalled in a recent interview that he still gets nervous on big days like the Worldwide Developers Conference, where Apple unveiled the Apple Intelligence artificial intelligence technology earlier this year. Cook told the Wall Street Journal that Apple Intelligence will make using the company's products "profoundly different." "I think we'll look back and it will be one of these air pockets that happened to get you on a different technology curve," Cook said. Cook's strong belief in the Apple Intelligence technology could put the feature on the same level of other technology features well-known to Apple fans over the years like the iPod's click wheel and the iPhone's touch interface, the Wall Street Journal reported. The Apple CEO said the technology advancements and use cases from Apple Intelligence could take time for some people to realize and experience. "But it will happen. It will happen for all of us." For Apple, communicating the importance and use cases of Apple Intelligence could be paramount for future growth. iPhone users are no longer buying new phones every year and may have to be persuaded to buy the newest iPhone 16 models, which is where Apple Intelligence will live. Apple Intelligence can summarize your notifications and emails, a feature that Cook admitted in the interview to using daily. Are you buying when the CEOs of the Magnificent 7 are selling? Stay in the know with our Insider Trades page -- see when leaders like Mark Zuckerberg, Elon Musk, and Jensen Huang are offloading their own shares. While some consumers may not be overly excited about Apple Intelligence or the price to upgrade to a new phone for the AI features, it might serve as a good reminder that the technology giant was previously laughed at for having a smartphone without a physical keyboard and the $399 cost of the iPod. "It's predictable in some ways," Cook added. Cook said the same will be realized by the skeptics of Apple Intelligence. "It's not that people are wrong and we're right. We have enough faith that if we love the product, there will be enough other people out there that love it too." Apple doesn't release products that are just good, instead focusing on great ideas, which could be why the company has abandoned working on electric vehicles. "Saying no to really, really good ideas so you can make room for the great ones," Cook added. While the Vision Pro hasn't captured the same mass demand as other Apple products, Cook remains proud of the technology and sees the future of the device. "At $3,500, it's not a mass-market product. Right now, it's an early-adopter product. People who want to have tomorrow's technology today." Similar to the skeptics who brushed off the success of the iPod, iPhone and AirPods and perhaps the same people doubting Apple Intelligence, Cook has a warning on success. "It doesn't occur overnight." Read Next: Apple Vision Pro Is 'Mind-Blowing,' Says CEO Tim Cook: 'We Live In A 3D World, But The Content That We Enjoy Is Flat' Photo: Tim Cook, Courtesy Apple Market News and Data brought to you by Benzinga APIs

Apple Intelligence 'changed my life': Tim Cook says Apple's AI is as innovative as the iPod's click wheel or the iPhone's touch screen

Apple Intelligence is set to launch before the end of October - and Apple's CEO Tim Cook believes the AI tools have already changed his life. In an interview with The Wall Street Journal, Cook emphasized just how much he believes in Apple Intelligence, despite the messy launch of the technology, which sees new features rolled out to users in phases over the next year. "We weren't the first to do intelligence," Cook told the WSJ. "But we've done it in a way that we think is the best for the customer." At Apple's WWDC keynote in June, the company claimed Apple Intelligence was "AI for the rest of us", and in the interview Cook said that while Apple isn't the first company to introduce AI tools to a smartphone, the company's approach is "Profoundly different." He added that he believes the addition of Apple Intelligence will completely change the way people use the iPhone, iPad, and Mac in the same way the iPod's click wheel or iPhone's touch screen once did. "I think we'll look back and it will be one of these air pockets that happened to get you on a different technology curve," he said. Cook said one of his favorite Apple Intelligence features is the ability to summarize emails and notifications, which had, he told WSJ, "changed my life." He added, "If I can save time here and there it adds up to something significant across a day, a week, a month." Apple Intelligence is expected to release on October 28, and while users who get to use Apple AI for the first time might find the limited features underwhelming at first, Apple is banking on small quality-of-life improvements like email summaries making a huge difference to the way we use our devices. Initially, Apple Intelligence will launch with Writing Tools, Notification Summaries, Clean Up, and a redesign of Siri which emanates from the edges of your device. These features are similar to other generative AI tools we've seen on the best Android phones, including the Google Pixel 9, although this is with Apple's polish and design. It's an incredibly exciting time to be an iPhone, iPad, or Mac user with Apple Intelligence's arrival upon us. While we can't fully predict the impact of Apple's entrance into the AI industry, we anticipate that it's going to be significant. The first few months of Apple Intelligence might prove to be frustrating at times, with some of the best features held back until 2025, but if these features prove as life-changing as Tim Cook suggests, we might in time be able to forgive Apple for the less-than-seamless launch.

Apple Intelligence 'Changed My Life,' Says CEO Tim Cook. Here's How.

AI isn't just an upgrade or a possible selling point for Apple CEO Tim Cook. It is, instead, revolutionary. In a Sunday interview with the Wall Street Journal, Cook praised Apple Intelligence, Apple's AI features that do everything from summarizing breakup texts to generating custom emojis. Cook said he used Apple Intelligence for tasks like generating overviews of long emails; he said it saved him time throughout the day. "It's changed my life," he told the Wall Street Journal. Apple Intelligence is rolling out later this month to eligible iPhones, and last week, Apple released a new iPad Mini designed with AI in mind. Related: 'Unreal and Dystopian': Apple Intelligence Is Summarizing Breakup Texts So You Don't Have to Read Them Apple wasn't the first to explore AI's use cases. Google, OpenAI, and Microsoft beat it to the punch, with Google releasing an AI smartphone a month before Apple did, OpenAI coming out with ChatGPT in November 2022, and Microsoft introducing Copilot in March 2023. In the WSJ interview, Cook acknowledged that Apple was late to the AI game, but "we've done [AI] in a way that we think is best for the customer." The company has tremendous reach, with nearly half of all smartphone users in the U.S. opting for an iPhone as of 2022. Apple is going for staying power; the slogan under Apple Intelligence reads "AI for the rest of us." That means that Apple Intelligence will roll out gradually. According to Bloomberg, eligible iPhones will get features like notification summaries and smart reply texts through the iOS 18.1 update on October 28. Later, Apple plans to integrate OpenAI's ChatGPT into the iPhone, to answer questions that Siri can't. The AI upgrades apply to the iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max, iPhone 16 lineup, and iPads and Macs that are running an M1 chip and up.

Apple CEO Tim Cook Uses iPhone, Apple Watch 'Every Day,' Talks Apple Intelligence Delay: 'We're Perfectly Fine With Not Being First' - Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL)

While testing Apple Intelligence, Cook saw a key feature that could save him time and increase productivity. All companies likely strive for products so good that the CEO uses them on a daily basis, and the world's most valuable company, Apple Inc. AAPL, is no different when it comes to its leader, Tim Cook. In a new interview, Cook says he uses multiple Apple products daily whether at home, at work or on the road. Apple CEO Tim Cook checks his iPhone first thing every morning, The Wall Street Journal reported in a new interview. Cook sorts through his email first thing in the morning, along with checking overnight sales reports and how Apple products are selling worldwide. The iPhone is also the last item Cook uses every night, setting his next day's morning alarm for 5 a.m. After the quick daily email and sales check routine, Cook works out, listening to classic rock music with his AirPods while recording the workout on his Apple Watch. Cook also uses his MacBook Air, MacBook Pro and iMac at the office daily. While on the road, Cook uses the iPad Pro. It is likely not a huge surprise to many Apple fans and investors that Cook is passionate about the company's products and one of its biggest daily users. "Every day, every product," Cook told the WSJ. Are you buying when the CEOs of the Magnificent 7 are selling? Stay in the know with our Insider Trades page -- see when leaders like Mark Zuckerberg, Elon Musk, and Jensen Huang are offloading their own shares. Along with using products that have already been released to the public, Cook also helps test new products like Apple Intelligence. Cook's test of Apple Intelligence might help explain a philosophy that the Apple CEO and company have: not first, but best. "We're perfectly fine with not being first. As it turns out, it takes a while to get it really great. It takes a lot of iteration. It takes worrying about every detail. Sometimes it takes a little longer to do that." Cook said it's great to be first to market, but if you have to pick between being first or best, the answer is clear: "it's about being the best." "We weren't the first to do intelligence. But we've done it in a way that we think is the best for the customer." Consumers have likely seen commercials or heard of a case of artificial intelligence being used to get summaries of long emails. Cook uses this Apple Intelligence feature for his own email inbox. "If I can save time here and there, it adds up to something significant across a day, a week, a month." Cook said using Apple Intelligence has had a big impact on his daily habits and productivity. "It's changed my life. It really has." Read Next: Tim Cook Once Worked For Apple Competitors: 5 Things You Might Not Know About The Apple CEO Photo: Shutterstock Market News and Data brought to you by Benzinga APIs