In a groundbreaking development, Apple has teamed up with Shutterstock to make AI image training even better. This collaboration, revealed on Monday, shows how serious Apple is about using top-notch AI technology in its devices. It is a major step forward for Apple as it works on bringing the latest AI advancements to all its products.
Jarrod Yahes, Chief Financial Officer of Shutterstock, revealed that these deals initially ranged from $25 million to $50 million each, with subsequent expansions in size for most firms. Additionally, Apple has secured agreements with Defined.ai, an AI data firm based in Seattle, to make its AI even better.
The announcement follows Apple’s ongoing negotiations with various publishers, including Conde Nast IAC and NBC, to utilize their content for AI model training. Greg Joswiak, Apple’s marketing head, hinted on social media that the WWDC conference will highlight new AI features in Apple devices.
This collaboration of Apple and Shutterstock has the potential to create image generation and editing capabilities of iPhones by augmenting AI image recognition technology. Additionally, iPhone users stand to benefit from advancements in voice recognition and automatic transcription and get better at recognizing and creating different types of media.
These new developments suggest two interesting possibilities. Firstly, Apple might use Gemini AI and Ernie Bot in the iPhone 16 series temporarily, until they finalize their own AI models. So, even if the initial models have outsourced AI, they could be replaced later with Apple’s own technology.
Secondly, the collaboration of Apple and Shutterstock shows that Apple’s AI efforts go beyond just text – they also include images, music, and videos. Although the exact purpose of these AI models is unclear, it’s likely that they involve various aspects like computer vision and creating images and videos.
In the end, the collaboration between Apple and Shutterstock is a big step forward in improving how AI handles images. With Shutterstock’s help, Apple can make its devices even smarter and offer users better experiences. As technology keeps evolving, collaborations like this one will continue to push boundaries and bring exciting changes to the way we interact with our devices.