Apple chief exec Tim Cook said on Wednesday that the company will reveal its plans for generative artificial intelligence (GenAI) technology later this year.

Speaking at the company’s annual shareholder meeting, Cook said that Apple envisions ​​"incredible breakthrough potential for generative AI, which is why we're currently investing significantly in this area. We believe that will unlock transformative opportunities for users when it comes to productivity, problem solving and more."

A day after it was reported that Apple shut down its automobile project and moved a significant number of its team to its AI division, Cook said that there would be more explicit AI features for its products later this year.

Noting that AI is already functioning behind the scenes in its products, Cook said: “Every Mac that is powered by Apple silicon is an extraordinarily capable AI machine. In fact, there's no better computer for AI on the market today,"

Apple’s major rivals Google and Microsoft have made major steps to integrate AI into its consumer and business products. The latter recently announced the first design change to its keyboard format in decades with the introduction of a dedicated ‘copilot’ key, and has heavily invested in ChatGPT maker OpenAI.

Also during Apple’s meeting, shareholders rejected a measure to disclose more information on its use of AI in its business and its ethical guidelines surrounding the tech. The measure was put forward by the pension trust of the US’s largest labour union federation AFL-CIO, which has proposed similar measures at other tech companies.

Brandon Rees, deputy director for corporations and capital markets with the AFL-CIO, said: "We hope that Apple will enhance its disclosure practices on this important issue to investors and other stakeholders."

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