Apple is ready to lose one in every of its most senior synthetic intelligence executives, with Robby Walker making ready to go away the corporate subsequent month, based on a Bloomberg report citing folks conversant in the matter.

Walker, who has been with the know-how big since 2013, at present serves as senior director of Apple’s Solutions, Info and Information staff, a job he assumed in April. He beforehand oversaw the Siri voice assistant earlier than its administration was transferred earlier this yr to Craig Federighi, Apple’s software program chief.

AI challenges and departures

His departure comes as Apple faces mounting scrutiny over its cautious strategy to AI improvement. Whereas rivals have raced forward with superior fashions, the iPhone maker’s Apple Intelligence suite, together with its integration of ChatGPT, has rolled out slowly, and a serious replace to Siri has been delayed till 2026.

Apple has seen a string of AI specialists exit in latest months, with a number of becoming a member of Meta Platforms. These strikes included Ruoming Pang, who headed Apple’s AI fashions, alongside researchers Mark Lee and Tom Gunter, all of whom have joined Meta’s Superintelligence Labs division.

Reviews earlier this yr instructed that Apple CEO Tim Cook dinner had shifted oversight of Siri to Mike Rockwell, vp of the Imaginative and prescient Merchandise Group, amid considerations concerning the efficiency of AI chief John Giannandrea.

Current product launch and AI technique

At its annual product launch final week, Apple unveiled new iPhone fashions, together with the slimmer iPhone Air, however supplied little readability on the way it intends to match rivals comparable to Google, which has highlighted its Gemini AI know-how in its newest units.

In the meantime, the US Meals and Drug Administration (FDA) has accredited a brand new function on Apple smartwatches designed to detect indicators of hypertension, the regulator confirmed on Friday.

Apple launched the blood stress monitoring functionality at its September 9 occasion, which additionally noticed the revealing of a refreshed iPhone vary, together with the slimmer iPhone Air.

The hypertension alert function will probably be out there on Apple Watch Collection 9, Collection 10, Collection 11, and the higher-end Extremely 2 and Extremely 3 fashions earlier than the top of September. Apple stated it plans to make the function accessible in round 150 international locations and areas, together with america and the European Union.

(With inputs from Reuters)