The details about the chips used in the upcoming iPhone 16 suggest that this phone will receive a significant AI boost.

According to Taiwan's Economic Daily News, the iPhone 16, expected to be released in September 2024, will include the A18 chip and the next-generation M4 chip (for Mac), a combination that can "significantly increase the number of built-in AI computing cores."

Taiwan produces over 60% of the world's semiconductors and over 90% of the most advanced semiconductors, so local news sources are likely to be the first to release detailed information about such upcoming products. In addition, iOS 18 is expected to bring Apple on par with Google in generative AI, so it makes sense for the next generation of Apple smartphones to leverage this AI capability.

Apple and Artificial Intelligence

Although Apple has not been at the forefront of the artificial intelligence wave in recent years, Apple CEO Tim Cook confirmed in a recent earnings conference call that the company is committed to generative AI. More importantly, he stated that the company will publicly unveil the fruits of this focus in 2024, perhaps in the iPhones to be released later this year.

In addition, Bloomberg reported in November that consumers should not expect significant hardware updates for the iPhone 16, but rather focus on the software updates that come with iOS 18. This will not only bring new features but also significant performance and security improvements.

iOS 18 will be compatible with older iPhones, but it is rumored that some features will be limited to the iPhone 16 - which may include AI functionality. For example, if such features rely on a new advanced neural network engine generated by the joint efforts of the A18 chip and the next-generation M4 chip, it would explain why some features are limited to the new models.