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The iPhone 17 and even the next iPhone 18 might face an uphill battle, but maybe Apple’s slower approach to AI might now be as bad as it looks. This article may contain personal views and opinion from the author. Apple launched the iPhone 17 series just last month, and while some people are still waiting for their shiny new devices to arrive, the internet is already buzzing with something less exciting: talks that the whole lineup might be in trouble just a few months from now. Yep, you read that right. AI – the buzzword that just won’t die – could apparently soon become a real problem for Apple. Sure, most consumers don’t make their phone-buying decisions based on AI (yet), but that might change very soon. And when it does, the iPhone 17 – and even next year’s iPhone 18 – might start to look a little outdated. Why? Because Apple still hasn’t fully figured out the AI part. The AI wave is only getting stronger Artificial intelligence has become the thing in tech, and that’s not slowing down anytime soon. In fact, we’re only just getting started. AI is becoming a core part of how we use our phones, whether we notice it or not. Google’s Gemini is already baked deep into Pixel phones, Samsung’s Galaxy lineup, and even other brands like Motorola and OnePlus. Meanwhile, OpenAI’s ChatGPT has made its way into phones through collaborations with companies like Nothing – and even Apple itself. Yep, Apple’s working with OpenAI too. Receive the latest editorials By subscribing you agree to our terms and conditions and privacy policy. So, AI is everywhere now – and that’s only going to get more intense. But here’s the thing: even though Apple has partnerships with both Google and OpenAI, it’s still lagging behind. Apple Intelligence isn’t quite the revolution Tim Cook promised on stage, and that upgraded Siri we were teased about? Still MIA. And that’s exactly why some experts think the iPhone 17 and 18 could face some trouble soon. They might have a point – because the numbers are hard to ignore. Over 1.1 billion people are expected to use AI by 2031, making it one of the fastest-adopted technologies ever. AI is already changing how people study, work, and create – it’s no longer some futuristic concept. It’s part of everyday life, from personal assistants to productivity tools. And as AI adoption grows, so does its influence on what people expect from their tech. Take Gen Z, for example – 52% of them already trust AI to help them make better decisions. Sure, 76% of consumers still worry about misinformation, but that doesn’t really matter when the next generation of buyers can’t imagine a phone without smart AI features built in. Recommended Stories So yeah, if Apple doesn’t catch up soon, this whole AI craze might just become the “stick in the wheel” that slows the company down. Or could it really? Let’s be honest, though – AI isn’t exactly perfect. Sure, it’s impressive on paper, but it’s also… kind of bad sometimes. Fun, yes, but not flawless. Think of stuff like Genmojis or those quirky image generation tools – cool for a few minutes, but not exactly “life-changing.” And while Apple is definitely trailing behind Google and OpenAI in AI development, those two aren’t exactly nailing it either. Gemini, for example, sometimes still struggles with simple tasks. You can’t always trust it to give reliable results – and recently, users even noticed it going full self-deprecating mode, apologizing too much and sounding “defeatist.” Basically, it started roasting itself. And I’m not entirely convinced by Google’s flashy AI demos either. They look amazing on stage, but I can’t help wondering – are they showing us the real deal, or a polished version that works only in ideal conditions? Because so far, I haven’t seen a real-world example that matches what Google shows off. It kind of reminds me of those moments when Apple hypes Siri improvements, and then… well, no one ever actually sees them. Video credit – Google The point is, all these companies love to hype up AI as the next big thing that will “change how you create.” But when you actually use it, it’s messy. You have to type a dozen prompts to get something usable, and even then, it might not be what you wanted. The same prompt can give two totally different results for two users, so that “secret formula” people share online? Yeah, that doesn’t always work. No matter how many times I told Gemini to make the cat look inside the house, it just wouldn’t do it – and yeah, that gets pretty annoying. | Images generated with Gemini That said, I’m not saying Apple’s safe. If it doesn’t pick up the pace, it might still run into real problems down the line. But at the same time, Google should probably slow down a bit on the hype train too – because it’s starting to pull an Apple move with all these overpromises. Case in point: the Pixel 10 Pro Fold. Google claimed it had IP68 dust resistance, and then it… didn’t. JerryRigEverything’s durability test showed dust getting inside easily – right before the phone literally exploded. Not exactly confidence-inspiring, right? So, do we actually care about AI on phones? That’s the big question. Maybe AI is just overhyped – at least for now. Personally, I don’t really care about it yet. It doesn’t give me anything extra, and sometimes it just gets in the way. I don’t need my phone to “think creatively” for me – I just want it to give me a straight answer when I search for something. So yeah, call me old-school, but good old Google Search still does the job better than any AI assistant out there (in my opinion, of course). "Iconic Phones" is coming this Fall! 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