Is Apple Intelligence already doomed to irrelevance?

When it comes to AI, Apple has performed quite the U-turn. Until recently, the company refused to even utter the acronym, instead referring to machine learning. That all changed last year, when Apple started positioning its laptops as AI machines. And in this year, Apple unveiled it's own take on AI called, of course, Apple Intelligence. These features have been rolling out slowly this year – but do users actually want them?

As we reported this week, a new study by Sellcell has revealed that 73% of iPhone users and 87% of Samsung users surveyed agree that AI features add little or no value to improving their daily lives. And the same report shows that AI features are a deciding factor for less than half of prospective smartphone buyers. This could be bad news for Apple, which has pitched several new products, first and foremost, as "built for Apple Intelligence".

"Apple introduces powerful new iPad mini built for Apple Intelligence". "Apple’s all-new Mac mini is more mighty, more mini, and built for Apple Intelligence". These are just two recent headlines from the Apple Newsroom that show Apple's insistence on placing the feature front-and-centre, ahead of other traditionally headline-grabbing features such as design or specs.

The Apple Intelligence rollout hasn't exactly encouraged excitement. Features have appeared slowly, and many regions are still missing key elements of the tech. And then there's the question of effectiveness, with Apple's AI summaries for notifications such as text messages and news headlines often changing meanings to sometimes hilarious effect.

But while Apple has steamed ahead with AI, the question of whether anybody actually wants an AI assistant in their pocket has, it seems, been overlooked. Sure, we've already seen portable AI gadgets such as the Humane Pin and Rabbit R1 fail, but these generally lead to increased speculation that people don't want a separate dedicated AI gadget when they already have a phone.

But Sellcell's study suggests the apathy might run deeper. In a world of bloated smartphone software, could it be that all people really want is a better camera and a longer lasting battery? Tech companies are clearly excited about AI, and artists are afraid of it, but if these study results are anything to go by, the it might just be that the average consumer just doesn't care all that much.

Which could be a problem for Apple. With the iPhone 16 launch suggesting stagnating innovation, and the Vision Pro, Apple's first new product category in years, hardly setting the world alight, the could do with releasing something revolutionary – or, as the tech world likes to put it, giving us another 'iPhone moment'. With every other sentence of its marketing materials dedicated to Apple Intelligence, the company clearly thinks this could be it. But right now, it looks like the world is shrugging its shoulders.