Apple has been caught out by the AI stampede.
Only its very top-end computers will be able to run Apple Intelligence on-unit.
So why can’t even the base-level MacBook Pro run AI?
This computer may not be able to run AI.Kamil S / Unsplash
Because of Apple’s penny-pinching RAM policy.
Now, it will have to catch up, starting with anew HomePod-like home hub.
Livin4wheel / Unsplash
Thisparsimonious memory allocationhas two obvious advantages for Apple.
No, not that kind of ram.Livin4wheel / Unsplash
To increase from 8GB to 16 RAM in the MacBook Pro for example, will cost $200.
Yes, that’s $200 for 8GB.
But now Apple has a problem.
If any device needs Better Siri, it’s the HomePod.Victor Carvalho / Unsplash
One thing that AI really needs is RAM.
It needs to hold its model in memory alongside all the other stuff that uses RAM on your system.
Some users might even see the lack of AI capability as a bonus.
But for Apple’s lesser devices, its stingy RAM policy is a disaster.
Siri, as we all know, is terrible.
It’s so bad that some of us havetaken to callingApple’s improved AI-based version “Better Siri.”
But Siri is the primary interface for many of Apple’s devices.
But none of those devices is getting Apple Intelligence.
The only iPhone able to run AI so far is the iPhone 15 Pro.
That is, even the current iPhone 15 will not manage it.
Almost certainly a lack of RAM.
At least our Macs and iPhones will no longer be hobbled.
