At its Worldwide Developers Conference last month, Apple announced a strategic partnership with OpenAI to integrate ChatGPT into iOS 18. The deal appears to be the start of a very close collaboration between the two companies, as it gives Apple an “observer role” on OpenAI’s board of directors, similar to what it already does with Microsoft. The role will allow Phil Schiller, a senior figure within the company, to attend board meetings without having voting rights. Schiller’s presence will give Apple insight into OpenAI’s decision-making processes, but without directly influencing its decisions.
Phil Schiller, chosen to represent Apple in this new role, is a historic figure at the company. After serving for a long time as head of marketing, in 2020 he moved to the role of Apple Fellow, that is, one of the company’s key executives. In this position, Schiller continues to manage the App Store and Apple events, reporting directly to CEO Tim Cook. In addition, Schiller is at the forefront of defending the App Store against accusations of anti-competitive practices globally, especially in the European Union where scrutiny in this regard has become much tighter in recent months. The agreement between Apple and OpenAI will become operational by the end of the year, although the details are subject to change. At this time, Schiller has not yet participated in any meetings of the OpenAI board, but he is expected to be involved in the coming months.
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