Apple's Secret AI Lab in Zurich Poised to Enhance iPhone Capabilities, Poach Google Staff

Author: Anusuya Lahiri | April 30, 2024 12:07pm

Apple Inc (NASDAQ:AAPL) has aggressively recruited dozens of artificial intelligence experts from Alphabet Inc (NASDAQ:GOOG) (NASDAQ:GOOGL) Google, establishing a secretive AI laboratory in Zurich, Europe. 

This move comes as the company intensifies its efforts to lead in new AI model and product development.

Apple, valued at $2.7 trillion, has been expanding its global AI and Machine Learning team by poaching many specialists from Google since hiring John Giannandrea as its top AI executive in 2018. 

This includes at least 36 experts who have since joined Apple, the Financial Times reports.

Also Read: Apple Strengthens Supply Chain in China While Growing Presence in Southeast Asia and India

In addition to its central AI teams in California and Seattle, Apple has grown its presence in Zurich, Switzerland. This expansion followed the acquisitions of two local AI startups, leading to the creation of the “Vision Lab” in Zurich.

The Zurich team has contributed to research on advanced AI models that merge text and visual inputs, which are crucial for products like OpenAI’s ChatGPT. Apple has advertised several generative AI positions in Zurich, maintaining a low profile in the area.

The company plans to showcase new generative AI features at its upcoming Worldwide Developers Conference, potentially transforming the next iPhone into a more sophisticated voice-activated assistant with an enhanced Siri capable of interacting with all apps via voice control.

Apple analysts projected a slight increase in revenue for the March quarter and a significant guide-down for the June quarter compared to consensus, followed by a negative market reaction. 

The critical event following the earnings will be Apple’s Worldwide Developer Conference (WWDC), where analysts anticipate new AI software features will be a significant highlight, with Apple experiencing a relief rally. 

Analysts will be closely watching the March quarter for total revenue, focusing on revenue from China (where he expects iPhone shipments to be down 28% year-over-year) and growth in Services revenue, which he projects at 12.7% year-over-year.

Apple stock gained over 2% in the last 12 months. Investors can gain exposure to the stock via Vanguard Information Tech ETF (NYSE:VGT) and SPDR Select Sector Fund – Technology (NYSE:XLK).

Price Action: AAPL shares trade higher by 0.22% at $173.88 at the last check Tuesday.

Also Read: Microsoft Set to Unveil Qualcomm-Powered AI PCs, Aiming to Surpass Apple’s MacBook Air

Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.

Photo by Thai Nguyen on Unsplash

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