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Apple’s AI talk cheers investors

The iPad maker has been under pressure to respond to the threat from the likes of ChatGPT

Tim Cook has remained tight-lipped about AI for a while. Photograph: AP Photo/Jeff Chiu

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Proinsias O'Mahony
Mon May 13 2024 - 06:00

Apple shares have lagged over fears the company is behind Microsoft, Google and other tech rivals when it comes to AI, but investors have lately become more optimistic that Apple is ready to compete.

Chief executive Tim Cook has remained tight-lipped about AI for a while, but there was a shift in tone during his recent earnings call with analysts. Cook was bullish about generative AI, talking about Apple’s “significant investments” in the field and advantages that would “differentiate” it from competitors.

Speculation about an AI iPhone was not the only factor that caused shares to pop, but it’s fair to say Cook’s words injected some optimism into the market.

Apple’s subsequent unveiling of new iPads boasting what it calls an “outrageously powerful chip for AI” further highlights a growing shift towards AI. Shares are now flat in 2024, following a strong recovery that drove the stock 11 per cent higher in three weeks.

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The mood may shift again. Indeed, Apple was rightly panned for a disastrous iPad ad depicting artistic tools being destroyed by a hydraulic press and then replaced with an iPad. The idea was clumsy, inadvertently tapping into widespread fears that AI will crush human creativity. Still, investors shrugged off the furore about the ad. For now, markets are giving Apple the benefit of the doubt on AI.

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