On Monday, Apple’s checklist of finalists for its coveted “iPhone App of the 12 months” award as soon as once more reveals how the iPhone maker is downplaying the affect of AI expertise on the cell app ecosystem. Because it did final 12 months, Apple’s 2024 checklist of prime iPhone finalists favors extra conventional iOS apps, together with people who assist iPhone customers carry out particular duties like recording skilled video (Kino), tailoring their operating plans (Runna), or organizing their travels (Tripsy). Different AI apps like ChatGPT, Anthropic’s Claude, Microsoft Copilot, and people who create AI photographs or movies weren’t nominated for iPhone App of the 12 months.
Given the recognition of ChatGPT, additionally now an Apple accomplice for its Siri enhancements, it’s stunning to search out the app has not earned any official year-end accolades from Apple’s App Retailer editorial crew, regardless of its adoption of intelligent new options in 2024, like an Superior Voice Mode for chatting with the AI digital assistant and a net search function that challenges Google.
Whereas ChatGPT is often featured throughout the App Retailer and Google Play’s editorial options, each Apple and Google final 12 months averted nominating ChatGPT as an general winner, regardless of the app changing into the fastest-growing shopper utility in historical past in early 2023 when it reached 100 million customers shortly after its launch. This 12 months, Google dubbed party-planning app Partiful its app of the 12 months.
Regardless of ChatGPT’s snub, a small variety of AI-powered apps made appearances on Apple’s different 2024 finalist lists, like these for the iPad and Mac App of the 12 months.
However amongst Apple’s checklist of 45 finalists throughout varied classes in apps and video games, AI-powered apps had been talked about just a few occasions. Moises, an app that provides AI instruments for training music, was nominated alongside children app Bluey: Let’s Play and animation app Procreate Desires for iPad App of the 12 months. Adobe Lightroom, which now consists of AI-powered options, was nominated together with productiveness app OmniFocus 4 and 3D design app Shapr3D for Mac App of the 12 months.
And, amongst a dozen Cultural Impression finalists, just one — language-learning app EF Whats up — was described by Apple as an app enhanced by AI expertise. (Whereas different apps might use AI beneath the hood, because the finalist Pinterest does, their App Retailer advertising and marketing doesn’t promote them as “AI” apps to shoppers.)
If something, Apple’s curated checklist of finalists means that apps empowering human creativity, not these helping with AI automation, are the apps which are worthy of highlighting. Many of the finalists’ apps assist customers do one thing extra with their iPhone or different system, with out counting on an AI assistant or options, whether or not that’s designing, organizing, filming, creating, or enjoying.
Kino, the professional video app from the makers of the professional digital camera app Halide, for example, goals to make everybody a greater videographer, whereas others assist Apple’s gadgets work as productiveness instruments for these in inventive fields.
This 12 months, Apple additionally added the brand new Apple Imaginative and prescient Professional class, the place it would choose each an app and sport winner.
