Apple Inc. has made a flurry of AI-related hires as well, appointing former Microsoft executive and Azure chief Amar Subramanya to head up Apple’s AI efforts. This move comes after significant backlash over the entries of the Apple Intelligence. Through this new feature, we hope to write succinct notification overviews. The transition follows the departure of John Giannandrea, who oversaw the AI initiative and faced criticism for numerous inaccuracies generated by the system.
By late 2024/early 2025, Apple Intelligence was facing criticism for generating a slew of embarrassing and inaccurate headlines. The biggest example of this was the erroneous report that Luigi Mangione had committed suicide. Mangione is now facing criminal charges, including the alleged murder of UnitedHealthcare’s CEO, Brian Thompson. A second mistake was announcing that Luke Littler was the champion before the last match even started. These sorts of inaccuracies led the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) to lodge complaints against Apple on two different occasions.
Apple Intelligence was first announced as part of a notification summary feature that would group over-alerted notifications into short, digestible carrot sticks. Its reliability is now under fire in the wake of these events. AI on the device Apple promotes its AI commitment by running tasks directly on customers’ products. This cutting edge strategy employs proprietary Apple Silicon chips and ensures users’ privacy by disallowing data collection.
While Apple has been investing in AI technology, competitors like Google and Microsoft have been pouring billions of dollars into massive AI data centers. These investments have led some critics to question Apple’s capacity to continue leading the charge in innovation within the industry. In response to these challenges, Tim Cook, Apple’s CEO, made a significant decision to strip Siri from Giannandrea’s oversight in March 2025. That was then – Mike Rockwell, who subsequently assumed Apple’s overall Siri strategy as top priority, signaled a company-wide strategy pivot.
Craig Federighi, Apple’s Senior Vice President of Software Engineering, has been actively involved in testing the enhanced version of Siri ahead of its planned launch in April 2025. For reasons we’ll outline here, most of the features Apple had introduced with so much fanfare failed to deliver during those tests. This has led to even more debate about whether Apple’s AI tools are ready for prime time.
Amar Subramanya’s appointment marks a new direction for Apple’s artificial intelligence efforts. Having previously worked at Microsoft, where he contributed substantially to AI initiatives, Subramanya is expected to bring fresh insights and expertise to the team. He will directly report to Craig Federighi, serving as an indication that leadership accountability is a top priority in improving Apple’s AI expertise.
