Apple is planning to invest billions of dollars in AI technology, according to analyst Ming-Chi Kuo. The company is reportedly working on a smarter version of Siri and aims to integrate AI into its various apps. Kuo suggests that Apple will purchase thousands of Nvidia HGX H100 8-GPU servers in the next few years, spending around $6.2 billion in 2023 and $4.75 billion in 2024. However, Apple still lags behind competitors like Google and Microsoft in the AI field. Meta, for example, is predicted to purchase around 40,000 AI servers in 2024, surpassing Apple. Kuo also mentions the possibility of Apple developing its own chips to reduce server costs but states that there has been no concrete action in this regard. There are concerns about the future of Apple’s generative AI business/services if the company does not significantly increase its investment.
Apple has been incorporating the voice assistant “Siri” into its major products such as the iPhone and Mac, but it has been pointed out that it is technologically lagging behind competitors such as Google and Microsoft in the AI field.
Analyst Ming-Chi Kuo, who is familiar with the company, reports that Apple is planning to invest billions of dollars in the AI field.
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Apple Plans to Invest Over 800 Billion Yen in AI Facilities
Economic journalist Mark Gurman recently reported that Apple is spending $1 billion a year on AI efforts. Gurman states that Apple is working on a “smarter new version of Siri” and aims to integrate AI into many of its own apps.
On the other hand, Kuo’s report suggests even larger investments. According to him, Apple plans to purchase 3,000 units of Nvidia’s AI server “HGX H100 8GPU” in 2023 and 18,000 to 20,000 units in 2024.
The price of the “HGX H100 8GPU” is $250,000. According to Kuo’s calculations, Apple is estimated to spend $5.37 billion in 2023-2024.
Each HGX H100 8-GPU server is priced at around $250,000. Therefore, it’s estimated that Apple will spend at least about $620 million in 2023 and $4.75 billion in 2024 on AI server purchases.
— Quoted from: medium.com/@mingchikuo
Translation: The price of each HGX H100 8GPU server is approximately $250,000. Therefore, it is estimated that Apple will spend approximately $620 million in 2023 and $4.75 billion in 2024 on AI server purchases.
On the other hand, Apple’s AI server purchases are still behind those of its competitors. For example, Meta is predicted to purchase around 40,000 AI servers in 2024, surpassing Apple by a large margin.
Kuo mentioned that Apple may develop its own chips to reduce server costs, but there are no specific moves at this point. Kuo expressed concern about Apple’s AI business.
The above does not consider other costs (such as labor costs, infrastructure operating costs, etc.). Thus, it’s reasonable to estimate that Apple would have to invest at least several billion US dollars annually to have a chance of catching up with its competitors. If Apple really intends to spend only a billion dollars a year on generative AI development, it won’t matter much if my survey is wrong, but I am genuinely concerned about the future of Apple’s generative AI business/service.
— Quoted from: medium.com/@mingchikuo
Translation: The above does not consider other costs (such as labor costs, infrastructure operating costs, etc.). Thus, it’s reasonable to estimate that Apple would have to invest at least several billion US dollars annually to have a chance of catching up with its competitors. If Apple really intends to spend only a billion dollars a year on generative AI development, it won’t matter much if my survey is wrong, but I am genuinely concerned about the future of Apple’s generative AI business/service.
Recently, Mark Gurman reported that Apple CEO Tim Cook claims to have been working on generative AI technology for years, while Apple executives have been scrambling since the end of last year out of concern for the company’s interest in the AI industry. While Apple has achieved steady success with its hardware products, its response to new technologies such as AI seems to be more erratic.