Apple CEO Tim Cook spoke positively about DeepSeek’s AI models during the company’s latest earnings call, calling them “an innovation that increases efficiency.” Answering questions from analysts at the meeting on Thursday, Cook also shared important information about Apple’s AI strategy.When asked about the impact of DeepSeek’s AI models on Apple’s profit margins, Cook responded: “I think, in general, innovations that increase efficiency are positive. We can clearly see that in DeepSeek’s models.” Referring to Apple’s approach to AI, Cook said the company is following a hybrid model. Accordingly, some simple operations are run locally on devices’ special chips, while more complex operations are run in the cloud through partnerships with AI model providers.Cook also emphasized that Apple is following a “cautious and careful” strategy in its AI investments. Currently, Apple only has a partnership with OpenAI, where ChatGPT operates in a private cloud environment to answer complex questions from iPhone users. However, Apple noted that this partnership is not exclusive and that it may integrate AI models other than OpenAI into the iPhone ecosystem in the future.Recently, OpenAI claimed that it had obtained evidence that DeepSeek’s AI models were trained using its technology. According to OpenAI, this process was carried out through a method called “distillation.” If this claim is true, it would constitute a violation of OpenAI’s usage policies and could overshadow DeepSeek’s achievements. However, these controversies have not prevented Cook from giving positive reviews of DeepSeek.On the other hand, some technology analysts have suggested that DeepSeek’s AI models are trained with much more GPU and computational costs than the company claims. This has raised questions about DeepSeek’s AI models being less efficient than expected. Despite this, DeepSeek’s AI models are offered to the market at a much lower cost compared to the solutions of its American competitors.
Tim Cook draws attention to Apple Intelligence effect
Apple’s gradual rollout of AI solutions has not had the expected impact on iPhone sales. While some analysts predicted that AI-powered features would boost iPhone sales, Apple’s sales declined slightly in the last quarter. However, Tim Cook tried to put a positive spin on this by stating that sales were stronger in regions where Apple Intelligence was available.Apple’s AI-powered news summarization feature has also been plagued by issues. The company temporarily shut down the feature this month due to misleading headlines generated by the AI. For example, Apple Intelligence incorrectly changed a BBC news headline to suggest that UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson was shot by murder suspect Luigi Mangione. This was not true.Apple positions its AI strategy differently from its rivals. The company aims to secure user data with on-device AI processes whenever possible, rather than integrating large language models with cloud-based systems.This approach demonstrates Apple’s commitment to privacy, while also revealing that the company views AI as a technology that enhances the value of its existing products rather than a direct source of revenue. The integration of AI into devices such as the iPhone, iPad, and Mac aims to improve user experience and strengthen the Apple ecosystem.Apple could expand its partnership with OpenAI and integrate other AI models, such as Google’s Gemini and Anthropic’s Claude, into its system. However, Tim Cook has not given any hints about integrating DeepSeek’s models. How the company’s AI strategy will shape itself in the future remains a matter of curiosity.
