According to a new note from analyst Jeff Pu of Haitong International Tech Research, seen by 9to5Mac, Apple plans to make changes specifically to the A18 Pro Chip for artificial intelligence on the device. Pu also writes that Apple is ramping up production of the A18 Pro chips earlier than usual.
This news comes as we continue to learn more about Apple's plans for AI features this year, including how they will balance on the device and cloud solutions.
New iPhone 16 Pro chip focused on artificial intelligence
In a note to investors, Pu, who is often a reliable source of rumors about Apple chips, says:
According to our supply chain checks, we are seeing increasing demand for the Apple A18, while A17 Pro sales have stabilized since February. We note that the Apple A18 Pro, the 6-GPU version, will have a larger die area (compared to the A17 Pro). , which could be a trend for edge computing powered by artificial intelligence.
Increasing the die area of a chip means it can accommodate more transistors and specialized components, which typically allows for higher performance. On the other hand, as the crystal size increases, so does the risk of defects and design flaws. This can also affect energy efficiency and heat dissipation. That's the balance Apple will have to strike as it ramps up production of the A18 Pro ahead of the iPhone 16 launch later this year.
Edge AI computing, meanwhile, refers to artificial intelligence that is processed directly on the device rather than in the cloud. Apple is believed to be taking a split approach to its AI features this year, relying on cloud infrastructure (possibly in partnership with Google) for some functions, while other functions run entirely on the device.
Here's a great explanation . edge AI from IBM:
Simply put, edge AI, or “AI at the edge,” refers to the combination of edge computing and artificial intelligence to perform machine learning tasks directly on interconnected peripheral devices. Edge computing allows data to be stored close to the device's location, and artificial intelligence algorithms allow data to be processed right at the edge of the network, with or without an Internet connection. This makes it easier to process data in milliseconds, providing real-time feedback.
This is not the first report to suggest that Apple has made changes to the A18 chip, particularly those targeting artificial intelligence. A report published last month said the A18 will “significantly increase the number of built-in AI compute cores” with a more powerful Neural Engine.
Both the iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Pro are expected to have a version A18 chip this year. Currently, the iPhone 15 uses the A16 chip, while the iPhone 15 Pro uses the A17 Pro chip. Today's report from Jeff Pu suggests that only the A18 Pro, targeting the iPhone 16 Pro and iPhone 16 Pro Max, will feature AI-focused changes.
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