Apple has made incredible technological strides by riding the AI wave after launching its own AI tool, Apple Intelligence.
More than 15 guests attended the launch on Wednesday morning at iStore in Sandton, Johannesburg.
From iStore Business Department, Lance van der Molen, emphasised that AI is a futuristic technology.
Citing research, he said that 75% of knowledge workers use AI at work, while 72% of corporate leaders use Generative AI on a weekly basis.
Van der Molen said AI has birthed new careers, where 21% of companies have now hired chief AI officers (CAIOs) in their offices.
“AI is here, it’s not something that is coming, it is not something we need to take a look at because technology is coming next year or in a few years. People have adopted it, it is here. AI is a transformative technology in the world, it is going to open new experiences, new jobs,” said Van der Molen.
He explained that Apple Intelligence strives to make everyday apps convenient for the brand’s customers.
“Apple Intelligence aims to enhance everyday apps and services with subtle realistic improvements. It integrates into personal workflow, from the iPad to the Mac. It is a completely new and exciting chapter in Apple innovation, transforming the way that you work and interact with Apple products. Apple Intelligence reflects the principles of Apple,” said Van der Molen.
He highlighted that a key feature of the new AI model is its privacy settings.
Apple Intelligence boasts top-class privacy settings, where a user’s data is processed on-device using Apple’s advanced silicon chips.
Personal data and information remain on the device unless the owner chooses to share their data publicly.
Private Cloud Compute ensures that any data shared with Apple’s servers is protected by industry-leading privacy measures.
iStore product trainer, Alexander Beukes, led a demonstration of Apple Intelligence, boasting a string of unique features.
Among other functions, the writing tools feature works as an instant proofreader by fixing grammatical errors in text, a dream for students and writers.
Apple Intelligence makes life easier by summarising long, tiresome emails, and also prioritises important emails at the top of the mailbox instead of scrolling through a horde of emails.
For content creators, the photos feature enables the ability to clean any unwanted background in a picture.
CCO at iStore, Linda van der Nest, said the South African English version of Apple Intelligence will be available in December, including the features.
The Apple Intelligence model is available from iPhone 15 Pro. It is also available on iPad Pro, iPad Air and iPad mini.
Meanwhile, Apple Intelligence can be found on MacBook Pro, MacBook Air, iMac, Mac mini, Mac Studio and Mac Pro.
“We want to ensure that we can empower customers to always know what is going on and how to get the best out of Apple products,” said Van der Nest.
The Star
hope.mafu@inl.co.za