Unreasonable concentration of power: Elon Musk slams Apple-Google AI deal

New Delhi:

As Apple plays catch-up in the technology sector's latest AI craze, the company has announced it will rely on Google to assist in smartening up its virtual assistant, Siri, and bringing other artificial intelligence features to the iPhone. However, this partnership has drawn sharp criticism from Elon Musk.

Elon Musk’s concerns over the Apple-Google alliance

In a post on X, Elon Musk expressed his dissatisfaction with the announcement. Musk argued that because Google already owns dominant platforms such as Android and Chrome, this new deal with Apple will lead to an "unreasonable concentration of power" within the tech industry.

It is worth noting that Elon Musk’s AI venture, xAI, is also a major player in the field. The company debuted its generative AI, Grok, several years ago and is currently embroiled in a legal dispute with Apple. In fact, xAI has filed a lawsuit against both the iPhone maker and OpenAI.

The details of the partnership

The agreement, which allows Apple to tap into Google’s AI technology, was disclosed on Monday in a joint statement from the two Silicon Valley powerhouses. The partnership will leverage Google’s Gemini technology to customise a suite of AI features dubbed "Apple Intelligence" for the iPhone and other Apple products.

Apple’s struggle to catch up

While Google and other competitors took an early lead in the AI race, Apple had previously promised to plant its first major stake in the field with an array of new features. These were originally expected to arrive in 2024 as part of a highly publicised software upgrade.

However, many of Apple’s AI features remain in the development phase, even as Google and Samsung continue to roll out advanced technology on their own devices. One of the most glaring omissions for the iPhone has been the promised overhaul of Siri, a move intended to transform the often-confused assistant into a more conversational and versatile multitasker.