Apple said on Monday that a seasoned engineer from Google and Microsoft will take over as head of the company’s artificial intelligence (AI) team.
John Giannandrea, Apple’s senior vice president of machine learning and AI strategy, plans to retire early in 2019 after the tech giant failed to demonstrate that it was keeping up with technological advancements.
According to the iPhone manufacturer, Giannandrea will advise Apple during his remaining tenure.
In a tweet announcing the news, Apple CEO Tim Cook wrote, “We are thankful for the role John played in building and advancing our AI work.”
Researcher Amar Subramanya has joined Apple as a vice president and will lead in “critical areas,” including AI foundation models and machine learning, according to the firm.
Subramanya was most recently a corporate vice president of AI at Microsoft, prior to that spent 16 years at Google where he was head of engineering for the Gemini digital assistant before leaving, Apple claimed.
Apple noted Subramanya’s experience integrating AI into features and products as “important to Apple’s ongoing innovation and future Apple Intelligence features”.
After joining Apple in 2018, Giannandrea oversaw the company’s AI initiatives.
Apple promised to provide an upgraded Siri digital assistant next year after delaying its rollout earlier this year.
Meanwhile, Google, Microsoft, OpenAI and other tech rivals have been releasing ever-improved AI models and features in a furious competition to lead in the technology.
Apple has faced pressure to demonstrate that it is not falling behind in the field of artificial intelligence, which has the potential to transform how people interact with computers and the internet.
Cook identified AI as “central to Apple’s strategy” and said Subramanya will add “extraordinary AI expertise” to his post reporting to senior vice president of Software Engineering Craig Federighi.
“Craig has been instrumental in driving our AI efforts, including overseeing our work to bring a more personalised Siri to users next year,” Cook added.
On a recent earnings call, Cook lauded the latest Apple devices and the tech giant’s custom CPUs and efforts to enhance products and services with artificial intelligence.
SOURCE: DAWN NEWS
