Apple CEO Tim Cook addressed investors during the company’s latest earnings call and described DeepSeek’s AI models as “innovation that drives efficiency.” His comments come amid growing scrutiny over Apple’s artificial intelligence (AI) ambitions and DeepSeek’s alleged misuse of OpenAI’s technology.
In response to an analyst’s question about how DeepSeek’s AI models could impact Apple’s profit margins, Cook made the remarks. “In general, innovation that drives efficiency is a good thing. And, you know, that’s what you see in that model,” he said.
Apple currently employs a hybrid AI model, running simple tasks locally on its devices’ custom silicon chips, while more complex operations rely on cloud-based AI solutions from external providers. So far, Apple has partnered exclusively with OpenAI, integrating ChatGPT into its devices to handle advanced queries in a private cloud.
However, Apple has signalled that this partnership is not exclusive and could include other AI firms in the future, such as Google’s Gemini or Anthropic’s Claude. Cook did not confirm whether DeepSeek’s models would be considered for future Apple integrations.
OpenAI’s claims raise concerns over DeepSeek’s technology
Despite Cook’s positive remarks, DeepSeek is currently facing allegations from OpenAI. The company claims to have evidence that DeepSeek’s AI models were trained using OpenAI’s technology through a method known as distillation. This would violate OpenAI’s usage policies and undermine DeepSeek’s achievements if proven.
Deepseek has over 50k Hopper GPUs to be clear.
— Dylan Patel (@dylan522p) November 20, 2024
People need to stop acting like they only have that 10k A100 cluster.
They are omega cracked on ML research and infra management but they aren’t doing it with that many fewer GPUs https://t.co/eaFzCoBrmU
Beyond these legal concerns, some industry analysts have questioned the efficiency of DeepSeek’s AI models. Reports suggest that the Chinese AI company may have used far more computing power than initially claimed, challenging the perception that DeepSeek’s models were trained with superior efficiency. Despite these doubts, DeepSeek continues to sell access to its AI at a much lower cost than American AI firms, making it a competitive player in the market.
Apple Intelligence faces a slow start
Meanwhile, investors pressed Cook for updates on the rollout of Apple Intelligence, the company’s suite of AI-powered features. The phased launch has not generated the expected surge in iPhone sales, with the latest quarter showing a slight decline compared to the previous year.
Cook attempted to present a more optimistic outlook, stating that Apple saw stronger sales in regions where Apple Intelligence had launched compared to areas still waiting for access.
However, Apple’s AI rollout has not been without issues. The company was forced to pause its AI-powered news summaries earlier this month after the feature produced misleading headlines. One high-profile error involved Apple Intelligence altering a BBC news headline, falsely claiming that Luigi Mangione, the man charged in the murder of UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, had taken his own life—an entirely incorrect assertion.
Despite these challenges, Apple remains committed to expanding its AI capabilities, though the path forward appears far from smooth.
