Apple Explores Robotics in Search of Life Beyond the iPhone

Apple is exploring a push into robotics — both to gain a foothold in consumers’ homes and add a new dimension to its product lineup. Also: Meta nears the launch of a cheaper Quest; Apple tries a new Vision Pro sales tactic; and the App Store chief is leaving as part of a reorganization.

Last week in Power On: Apple is playing the long game with a switch away from Qualcomm modems.

The Starters

Amazon Astro home robot.Source: Amazon.com Inc.

When Apple Inc. executives have pondered what new products to sell, they realize they have a bit of a dilemma: The company’s devices are already woven into nearly every part of consumers’ lives.

People get their information and entertainment through the screens of iPhones, iPads, Macs and Apple TV set-top boxes. AirPods and Beats headphones deliver audio to their ears. And the Apple Watch gives customers a view into their health and fitness. Apple is even trying to literally change the way people see the world through the Vision Pro.

The company can always improve those devices (making them smaller, boosting battery life or speeding up processors), but it’s much harder to find a groundbreaking new innovation.

Apple failed to create a new product category with its self-driving car project, which was shuttered earlier this year. But the effort did spark an intriguing question within the company: If Apple products can move around on their own, what new experiences could be created?

Though the dream of selling an autonomous car ultimately died, the concept was essentially a giant rolling robot. And the fundamental technology can be applied to other areas. Around 2020, Apple began exploring the idea of having other products move around via robotics — an effort that’s still very much alive today.

But Apple is still in the early stages of figuring out the best way to use robotics. The test case will be a tabletop device codenamed J595 that brings together a large, iPad-like display with cameras and a base that features a robotic actuator. That product likely will arrive around 2026 or 2027, followed by mobile robots and possibly even humanoid models in the next decade.

With robotics, Apple believes it can solve a series of first-world problems:

• Your device is only useful if you can reach it. There are many occasions when you might like to use your computer but it isn’t nearby — or your hands are otherwise occupied. Maybe you left a device in your home office, but now you’re in the kitchen or living room and need it.
• You may want to take photos of things or launch a videoconferencing session, but you’re not holding a device or sitting directly in front of it.
• You might want to operate or check something in your home while being out of the house.

1. 苹果正在探索机器人技术,以扩展其产品线并在消费者家庭中获得立足点。

2. 苹果正在开发一款代号为J595的桌面机器人设备,预计2026-2027年推出。该设备将结合iPad大小的显示屏、摄像头和机器人执行器底座。

3. 苹果认为机器人可以解决一些"第一世界问题",如让设备更易于使用、远程控制家庭设备等。

4. 人工智能将是未来机器人设备的核心。苹果正在开发基于生成式AI的新人性化界面。

5. 机器人技术面临诸多挑战,包括高成本、消费者接受度、技术难题等。

6. 苹果已经招聘了机器人专家,并曾考虑收购Boston Dynamics等机器人公司。

7. 机器人可能是苹果进入智能家居市场的新方式,与亚马逊和谷歌竞争。

8. 苹果高管对机器人前景看法不一,既有乐观者也有怀疑者。

分析:

• 苹果进军机器人领域显示其在寻求新的创新突破口,扩展产品线。
• 这一举措与苹果擅长的硬件、软件、AI等领域契合。
• 面临的挑战不容小觑,包括技术、成本和市场接受度等。
• 如果成功,可能为苹果开辟新的收入来源,并强化其在智能家居领域的地位。
• 这一举措反映了科技巨头在AI和机器人时代的战略布局。