Apple launches ‘AI training’ for developers after it announces new artificial intelligence features

Apple’s academies will teach pupils – and former pupils – about how to build their own systems

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Apple is launching a new artificial intelligence curriculum in its developer academies, as the company moves further into embracing AI.

The company runs a host of developer academies across the world, in locations such as Italy and Brazil, with a new one recently announced in Bali. They are run in conjunction with existing educational institutions, and aim to teach students to become fully-fledged programmers.

Now, that will mean all students being trained on “technologies and tools that take advantage of artificial intelligence”, Apple said. It will be a “foundational skill” at the academies, alongside other topics such as coding and marketing.

Apple had long been resistant to using the words AI or artificial intelligence, instead describing features that used the technologies in other terms. But in recent months, amid an increase in AI hype, it has become increasingly open about doing so.

The announcement about its developer academies came just a week after it released “Apple Intelligence”, for instance, a suite of new AI-powered tools aimed at making iPhones and other devices smarter.

Those AI tools will come to many of its other platforms, including Xcode, the app used to develop apps for Apple’s devices. New updates bring a tool called Swift Assist, for instance, which uses AI to help as developers write code.

That will be a part of the new curriculum, as well as teaching on “how to build, train, and deploy machine learning models across Apple devices”, Apple said. It will include teaching on the “fundamentals of AI technologies and frameworks” as well as information about how it is applied within Apple’s own products.

“At Apple, we see coding as a universal language and believe in empowering developers, creators, and entrepreneurs across the world with tools and technologies that will allow them to create phenomenal experiences,” said Susan Prescott, Apple’s vice president of worldwide developer relations.

“With the introduction of curriculum dedicated to AI and other new technologies, we’re excited to see what students will build to share with their communities and the world.”