What challenges the new head of Apple’s AI division will face from his first day on the job

The appointment of Amar Subramanya as vice president of artificial intelligence will be one of Apple’s most notable personnel decisions of recent years. He will be tasked with a wide range of responsibilities related to the development of AI technology within the company.

Amar Subramanya will have a wide range of responsibilities related to the development of AI technology within the company.

Subramanya’s experience and the context of the transition

After announcing John Giannandrea’s impending departure, Apple confirmed that Subramanya will join the company after serving less than six months as corporate vice president of AI in Microsoft’s new AI structure. Prior to that, he spent 16 years at Google, where he worked his way up from researcher to vice president of engineering in 2019.

He is also listed among the authors of two major scientific papers that accompanied the launch of Gemini (December 2023) and Imagen 3 (August 2024.

In recent years, Google has also struggled with accelerated AI development following the release of ChatGPT, although it was the company that developed the underlying architecture of Transformers. However, Google eventually managed to bring comparable models to OpenAI’s solutions to market and integrate them into its products. Subramanya, who held an engineering leadership position, was involved in the process.

Main Challenges at Apple

From day one, Subramanya will have to work under a high level of scrutiny for the company’s AI direction. He will be expected to fix problems that have developed over the previous years, especially given the delays in Apple Intelligence development and Siri’s limited progress compared to its competitors.

Subramanya will be tasked with fixing problems that have developed over the previous years, especially given the delays in Apple Intelligence development and Siri’s limited progress compared to its competitors.

The situation is complicated by reduced staffing levels and reduced employee motivation. It will likely require rapid team reinforcement to compensate for the loss of talent that Apple has suffered over the past year.

At the same time, the company is likely to need to strengthen its team quickly to compensate for the loss of talent that Apple has suffered over the past year.

The arrival of a new leader may increase interest in working in Apple’s AI division and help retain some employees who have been considering alternative career options. A possible factor is Subramanya’s experience and ties to former colleagues, which could be helpful if Apple continues to use Gemini’s technology in the new version of Siri.

Subramanya’s experience and ties to former colleagues could be helpful if Apple continues to use Gemini’s technology in the new version of Siri.

Strategic Expectations

A separate challenge is shaping the long-term architecture of AI development within the company. Subramanya will need to not only fix existing problems, but also lay the groundwork for future research and technology deployment, ensuring the link between scientific work and practical products.

Giannandrea had previously tried to create a similar model of collaboration, but rapid changes in the industry after the advent of ChatGPT complicated those plans. His departure underscores that Apple’s new AI strategy requires not just operational decisions, but a systematic approach for years to come.