While most users' attention is focused on Apple Intelligence revolves around Siri and new features in iOS 26, the Californian giant seems to be slowly but surely incorporating artificial intelligence into areas that are not visible to the average user. One of them is the development of its own chips. Apple Silicon.
Hardware boss Applu Johny Srouji stated during a May speech at the Belgian research center Imec that Apple actively exploring the possibilities of using generative AI in chip design, with the aim of speeding up the entire development process. "Generative AI has huge potential to significantly reduce design time and represents a significant increase in productivity,” said Srouji, who received an award for his contribution to the semiconductor industry during the visit.
Gallery
AI under the hood Apple Silicon
According to Srouji, companies like Cadence and Synopsys, leaders in chip design software that are already integrating AI directly into their tools, play a key role in this regard. And it is these Apple used in the development of A and M series chips, which can be found in iPhoneon iPhones, iPads, and Macs. Instead of trying to catch up with the competition in consumer AI features like ChatGPT or Gemini, then Apple for now, it focuses on a quieter, but no less important aspect, namely the use of AI behind the scenes, where it can have a greater long-term impact than just improved chatbot
Gallery
From A4 to M4
During his speech, Srouji also recalled the history of the development Apple Silicon from the very first A4 chip in the iPad in 2010 to the recently introduced MacBook Air with the M4 chip, which pushes the boundaries of performance and energy efficiency. He also mentioned a major milestone from 2020, when Apple announced the transition of Macs from Intel to its own chips. "Mac transition to Apple Silicon was a huge gamble for us. We had no backup plan, no product line split. We bet everything on one card, including a huge software effort", " declared Srouji.
And as it turned out, it paid off. Apple Silicon today it is considered a benchmark in the field performance per watt, battery life and system optimization, which gives Macs an edge over most of the competition. If now Apple By incorporating generative AI into chip development, development can be accelerated even further – while also enabling the design of even more complex and efficient architectures.
