Apple's New 'Answers' Team Developing ChatGPT-Like Search Experience to Boost AI Efforts

Apple reportedly has a 'stripped-down' AI chatbot to compete with ChatGPT in the works

Bloomberg reports that Apple has a dedicated team to create an in-house chatbot and search experience. Apple has fallen far behind in the competitive market of AI-powered chatbots, but it may have a plan for an in-house option that aligns with the company's "not first, but best" philosophy. According to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman, Apple created a team called "Answers, Knowledge and Information" earlier this year that's tasked with developing a "stripped-down rival to ChatGPT." Forming this team represents a major change in direction from Apple's earlier stance on artificial intelligence when the company partnered with OpenAI in 2024 to infuse Siri with ChatGPT instead of developing its own AI chatbot. Now, Gurman reported that this new Apple team will instead develop in-house AI services for a "new ChatGPT-like search experience" that can crawl the web to respond to questions. These new capabilities could be a standalone app, as well as support AI capabilities for Apple's Siri, Spotlight and Safari, according to Gurman's sources. The team is reportedly led by Robby Walker, who previously oversaw Siri, and has been advertising job openings that mention wanting experience with search algorithms and engine development. Beyond the Answers, Knowledge and Information team, Apple has experienced some growing pains when it comes to artificial intelligence. Earlier this year, the company said it would delay the release of the new-and-improved Siri, adding only that it would roll out "in the coming year." However, Apple is aware of the need to accelerate its Apple Intelligence program to stay competitive. In the latest third-quarter earnings call, the company's CEO Tim Cook said that Apple is open to acquisitions to fast-track its AI roadmap.

Apple now looking to rival ChatGPT with a new in-house 'Answers' team: report - 9to5Mac

According to the latest edition of Mark Gurman's Power On newsletter, Apple has a new plan up its sleeve to rival the competition in the AI search space. This is a major pivot from Apple's previous stance, where the company said it didn't want to develop a chatbot. Apple Intelligence has been off to a rocky start, to say the least. The abilities that have shipped, such as Genmoji and Notification Summaries, haven't exactly been stellar. Apple has still failed to ship its all-new Siri, and has since delayed its launch by over a year. Apple would like to change that, though. Earlier this year, they formed a new "Answers, Knowledge, and Information" team internally, per Bloomberg: Despite philosophical reservations among some Apple leaders, the company is clearly heading in that direction. Earlier this year, Apple quietly formed a new team called Answers, Knowledge and Information, or AKI. This group, I'm told, is exploring a number of in-house AI services with the goal of creating a new ChatGPT-like search experience. In the past, Apple has expressed interest in working with AI startups like Perplexity, which almost exclusively specializes in an AI search engine experience, so this news isn't exactly a shock. Per the report, the new team is led by Robby Walker, a former Siri executive who previously lost control after this year's delays. For context, Robby Walker held a widely reported on meeting this year where he called the Siri delays 'ugly and embarrassing.' Given the fact that this effort just started, it'll likely be a while before we see the results of it. That said, it's still exciting to hear that Apple is working on an AI search experience of sorts. I personally find that quite useful. What do you think about the possibility of Apple launching an AI search experience? Is this something that excites you? Let us know in the comments.

Apple's new 'Answers' team is developing a stripped down ChatGPT experience

It's no secret that Apple is falling behind in the AI space. Other companies like Google have embraced things like AI search, whereas Apple has taken its sweet time tooling around with some AI-powered tools that make up the core of Apple Intelligence. Per Mark Gurman's latest Power On Newsletter, that may be changing in the future. Apple has apparently been quietly putting together an "Answers, Knowledge, and Information" team, also known as AKI. This AKI team is headed by Robby Walker, a senior director at Apple who reports to John Giannandrea, Apple's senior vice president of Machine Learning and AI. Robby was moved to the AKI team after a shakeup in the wake of Siri feature delays. The team's goal is fairly straightforward: to build a "new ChatGPT-like search experience," says Gurman. As Gurman states, the initiative is still in its early days, but Apple already has job listings posted for engineers. Not much else is known. The team is working on the aforementioned system to crawl search results and give answers instead of redirecting people directly to the search results. This "answer engine," as Gurman calls it, would be able to crawl the web to gather information and respond to questions like ChatGPT does. A standalone app and backend infrastructure plans to power everything may be in the works. One of the job listings specifically mentions search algorithms and engine development, so Apple may also be working on search engine stuff. It's no secret that Apple Intelligence can use the help. Response to Apple's AI-powered tools has been lukewarm, and while Cupertino has studied how to integrate AI into its operating systems more aggressively, it hasn't been terribly happy with what's seen so far. Siri's AI upgrade is still in the works with an expected release date of spring 2026, so it's likely that AKI's work will be directly integrated into Siri and Apple's other products if they can get it done on time.

Apple is eyeing a ChatGPT-like search, but it must focus beyond Siri

Siri needs an AI overhaul, but Apple must really focus on Safari to reap the benefits. It's no secret that Apple is currently struggling to deliver a smash-hit AI product, the way Google has served with Gemini, or Microsoft has achieved with Copilot. The company has been trying a similar overhaul with Siri, but those plans have been beset by delays, and it is only expected to see the light of day in late 2026. The delay spooked Apple to such an extent that the company inked a stopgap deal with OpenAI, which helped integrate ChatGPT with Siri, and broadly, with the Apple Intelligence stack. But it seems Apple is working on a radical in-house solution, one that would essentially be a watered-down approach to ChatGPT, but with internet search capabilities. Siri, but flavored like ChatGPT Lite? According to Bloomberg, a newly formed Answers, Knowledge and Information (AKI) team at Apple is working on a ChatGPT-inspired search framework for Siri. "While still in early stages, the team is building what it calls an "answer engine" -- a system capable of crawling the web to respond to general-knowledge questions," says the report. In addition to Siri, Apple reportedly plans to integrate the search functionality within Spotlight and Safari, as well. Spotlight has already received a massive functional upgrade in macOS Tahoe, so it won't be surprising to see it evolve into a universal answering hotspot, one that covers local data and information sourced from the internet. Recommended Videos It may sound chaotic at first, but it's not entirely alien. How does Siri, Spotlight, or Safari know when I want an AI to answer my query, or launch a web Search? Well, look no further than Dia. The universal search box in the AI-focused browser dynamically switches between "chat" and "Google" mode as you type your search keywords. When you type "Birkin bag" in the text field, it defaults to web search mode. But as you type "where to buy a Birkin bag," the search field automatically switches to chat mode and offers the answer, just the way ChatGPT or any other AI answering engine like Perplexity would handle your questions. Right now, when you summon Siri on your iPhone and ask it a question that requires searching the internet or just pulling knowledge from an information bank, it opens a prompt box asking whether the question can be offloaded to ChatGPT. Once you agree, ChatGPT kicks into action and offers the required information. Of course, it's not seamless. With Siri gaining web search capabilities and enhanced natural language comprehension (akin to a ChatGPT or Gemini), it would be much easier for users to simply ask anything they want and get it answered. In its current state, Siri feels like a relic of the past, especially when compared to products such as Google's Gemini Live or ChatGPT's voice mode. In fact, Gemini works better on iPhones than Siri. As far as Apple's plans go, building something as advanced as ChatGPT or Gemini seems like a far-fetched goal. As per Bloomberg, plans for "LLM Siri" have kept running into delays, and the recent exodus of top AI talent casts more doubts over Apple's ambitions of reimagining Siri for the AI era. It's not just about a phone assistant Building a next-gen virtual assistant - just the way Google Assistant has evolved into Gemini, or Copilot at Microsoft - is not the only area where Apple is currently lagging far behind the competition. In fact, Big Tech is now as focused as much on chatbots as it is on web browsers. Agentic workflows are now being seen as the next big thing in the field of AI. In a recent interview, co-founder and chief of Perplexity, Aravind Srinivas, explained why browsers are more suitable for AI than AI chatbots and apps: "You get full transparency and visibility, and you can just stop the agent when you feel like it's going off the rails and just complete the task yourself, and you can also have the agent ask for your permission to do anything. So that level of control, transparency, trust in an environment that we are used to for multiple decades, which is the browser." Unfortunately, Apple is severely lagging behind in the browser wars. With the introduction of AI Mode in Search and deeply integrating Gemini across its Workspace ecosystem, Google has changed how deeply AI can change web browsing and web-based workflows. Safari desperately needs an AI overhaul Upstart browsers such as Dia and Perplexity's Comet have proved that the era of legacy tools such as extensions is coming to an end. Soon, skills and custom agents will take over. Less than a week ago, Microsoft introduced Copilot Mode in Edge. I have spent a few days with the new AI-powered tools in Edge, and I believe it's a bold (and dramatically more practical) new direction for web browsers. In comparison, Safari misses out on any such AI-driven experiences. From a context-aware sidebar to multi-tab contextual actions, Apple's browser is sorely missing out on the conveniences that AI is bringing to modern age web browsers. Assuming Apple succeeds at building its own ChatGPT-like answer engine, it would take a massive undertaking to build meaningful features around it in Safari. Right now, what Apple needs to do is not just build an answering engine, but pay close attention to the competition. I am sure Apple is monitoring the shifting landscape of AI agents and browsers. It simply has to pick up pace, or as CEO Tim Cook hinted at in a recent all-hands meeting, the company "will make the investment to do it." Will Apple acquire a hot AI lab like Perplexity or Anthropic? Only time will tell, but the company certainly has to take a more holistic approach with AI than just focus on building the next great AI chatbot.

Apple Sets Sights On AI Comeback With New Team Developing ChatGPT-Like Search Tool To Transform Apple Intelligence And Strengthen Its Position In The AI Market

Apple is lagging behind compared to its peers in the AI industry, but a new report claims that the company is planning to upgrade its Apple Intelligence platform with new tools. Apple has been accused of being left behind, which has reflected in the company's overall revenue for the third quarter, which could have been further improved. The new plans will serve to be a turning point for Apple's AI endeavors. The company previously stated that it will not develop a chatbot similar to ChatGPT, but it appears that hardships in the field have changed its mind. It has been more than a year since Apple Intelligence saw daylight, and so far, it has failed to make a dent in the industry, resting behind the competition in basic tasks. Moreover, one of the unique features of Apple Intelligence was delayed until next year, and even though Tim Cook showed enthusiasm at its earnings call, the public begs to differ. Personalized Siri would have changed the entire iPhone experience, and iOS is indeed showing age due to its absence. Prominent analyst Mark Gurman notes in his latest Power On newsletter that Apple would like to change its approach and accept changes which it has been avoiding for a while. Apple formed its new "Answers, Knowledge, and Information" or AKI team earlier this year, which internally worked on various AI services, including a tool that will provide users with a ChatGPT-like search experience. Despite philosophical reservations among some Apple leaders, the company is clearly heading in that direction. Earlier this year, Apple quietly formed a new team called Answers, Knowledge and Information, or AKI. This group, I'm told, is exploring a number of in-house AI services with the goal of creating a new ChatGPT-like search experience. Apple has been in talks with different AI startups, including Perplexity, which specializes specifically in AI search engine experience. This shows that the company has been working on some AI-powered features and services for a while. In my opinion, a dedicated AI-powered chatbot with search is one of the things lacking in iOS 18 or the forthcoming iOS 26 platforms, which is convincing users that Apple is far behind in the AI race. Gurman also states that the new team is led by Robby Walker, who has previously worked on Siri but lost control of it due to the delay of updated AI features. Considering the company just began working on the new utilities, it will take a while before the final product is ready to be released to the public. Moreover, Apple's entry into the AI Search experience could push other companies to offer their own rendition of the technology. What are your views on Apple launching its own AI-powered search experience similar to ChatGPT? Let us know your thoughts in the comments.