According to a report from Bloomberg, at least four of Apple’s AI researchers and one top Siri executive have quit the company in recent weeks.
- The latest executives to depart Apple include Yinfei Yang, Haoxuan You, Bailin Wang, and Zirui Wang, according to the report.
- Yang has reportedly moved on to start a new company, while You and Bailin Wang have found new positions at Meta.
- As per the report, another Apple executive, Stuart Bowers, among the most senior executives on the Siri team, had earlier left the company to join Google DeepMind.
Apple Inc. (AAPL) is reportedly losing artificial intelligence (AI) researchers and Siri executives to competitors, including Meta Platforms Inc. (META) and Alphabet Inc.’s Google (GOOG).
According to a report from Bloomberg, which cited people familiar with the matter, at least four of the iPhone maker’s AI researchers and one top Siri executive have quit the company in recent weeks and moved to Meta and Google DeepMind.
The departures come as Apple works on improving its AI strategy to compete with other big tech companies.
Executive Reshuffle
The latest executives to depart Apple include Yinfei Yang, Haoxuan You, Bailin Wang, and Zirui Wang, according to the report.
Yang has reportedly moved on from the tech giant to start a new company. Meanwhile, You and Bailin Wang have found new positions at Meta, according to the people cited in the report.
You will join Meta’s Superintelligence research arm while Bailin Wang will join Meta recommendations. Wang has found a position at Google DeepMind.
As per the report, another Apple executive Stuart Bowers, among the most senior executives on the Siri team, had earlier left the company to join Google DeepMind.
Apple’s AI Push
Earlier this month, Apple and Google announced a multi-year collaboration under which Apple Foundation Models will leverage Google's Gemini models and cloud technology to power Apple Intelligence features in the future, including developing Siri for more personalized features, expected to launch this year.
On Thursday, ahead of its strong first-quarter (Q1) earnings results, Apple reportedly acquired Israeli artificial intelligence (AI) audio startup Q.ai for an undisclosed amount.
While Apple reportedly did not comment on how it plans to use Q.ai's technology, the company said that the startup had previously worked on new machine learning applications to help devices comprehend whispered speech and also improve audio in difficult environments.
Earlier reports also indicated that Apple is planning to turn Siri into an AI chatbot, code-named Campos. The release could come later this year, as per reports.
How Did Stocktwits Users React?
On Stocktwits, retail sentiment around AAPL shares jumped to ‘extremely bullish’ territory from ‘bullish’ over the past day.
Meanwhile, message volumes increased to ‘extremely high’ from ‘high’ levels.
One bullish user said that Apple is an AI enabler, adding that its processors allow faster AI responses. The user also highlighted Apple’s partnership with Google, as well as the Q.ai acquisition.
Shares of AAPL have gained nearly 9% in the past year.
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