According to a recent report by Bloomberg journalist Mark Gurman, Apple is actively preparing to open its artificial intelligence (AI) models to third-party developers in the upcoming iOS 19. This move aims to promote software development, drive application innovation, and enhance the appeal of Apple's own hardware products.
It is understood that Apple is developing a software development kit (SDK) and related frameworks so that developers can create new features using the large language models adopted by Apple Intelligence. This plan is expected to be officially released at the upcoming Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC), scheduled for June 9th.
Currently, Apple Intelligence has already been applied to some functions in iOS and macOS, such as notification summaries, text editing, and basic image generation. In the future, developers will have the opportunity to integrate these AI technologies into their applications and specific features. However, Apple plans to initially prioritize opening smaller AI models that can run on local devices rather than larger models that rely on cloud servers.
According to insiders, this developer program will be a highlight of WWDC, but the most anticipated events remain the new versions of iPhone, iPad, and Mac operating systems. The program's codename is Solarium, with the goal of creating a more unified user interface, inspired by the visionOS system used in the Vision Pro headset.
At present, developers' access to Apple Intelligence is relatively limited, only able to achieve feature integration such as notification sorting and summaries, writing tools, Genmoji, and Image Playground. Core Apple Foundation Models are not yet available to developers.
Apple hopes to open up AI models and simplify the development process to replicate the success of the App Store, positioning its operating system as the core of an AI software platform. This shift not only marks Apple's further layout in the AI field but also creates more possibilities for developers.
In addition, Apple originally planned to release new development tools and features earlier, such as the updated App Intents that allow users to more precisely control app operations via Siri. These updates are expected to be released during the iOS 19 development cycle, spanning from September 2025 to 2026.
Key points:
📅 Apple plans to open AI models in iOS 19 to promote application innovation.
🔧 Developers will be able to use Apple Intelligence to create new features, with initial focus on local small models.
📈 Apple aims to reshape the operating system as the core of an AI software platform through this opportunity.