The AI Intelligence Gap Inside Apple

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Apple is executing what I call a Device-Layer Control Inversion — a strategic move that fundamentally reframes the AI infrastructure race. While hyperscalers pour $50-100 billion annually into cloud compute and training infrastructure, Apple recognized a structural truth: every AI interaction must eventually reach a human through a device. Control the device layer, control the chokepoint.

The traditional AI value chain flows from the user to the AI agent to the service. Apple inserts itself as the mandatory intermediary: User → Apple Device → AI Agents → Services. At this control point, Apple governs privacy defaults, agent permissions, payment rails, and user context ownership.

However — and this is the critical nuance — Apple has not yet built an AI brain worthy of its hardware body.

This isn’t a defensive posture executing flawlessly. It’s a structural advantage being compromised by a glaring capability gap that forces Apple into uncomfortable dependencies on competitors.