Apple reshaped its artificial intelligence strategy after years of slow progress and internal friction. At the center of that change stands software chief Craig Federighi. He now controls both software and AI, and his choices explain why some bold ideas never reached your iPhone. One of them was an AI-powered home screen that would move apps around on its own.
According to a detailed report from The Information, Federighi took direct control of Apple’s AI group over the past year. He did not like how slowly things moved, so he pulled Siri away from the old AI leadership and brought it under his software team. Soon after, Apple decided to use outside AI models, including Google’s Gemini, to help rebuild Siri and ship a long-delayed upgrade.
Why the AI home screen died
Apple engineers pitched a feature that would use AI to rearrange the iPhone home screen based on what you do. The idea was that your most-used apps would float to the front when you need them.
Federighi shut it down. He believed it would confuse people. Users expect their apps to stay where they put them. He also worried about AI behavior that changes on its own. In design reviews, he wanted clear answers about how features behave. AI does not always give those answers.
People who worked with Federighi said he treats AI as risky and hard to control. He prefers software that follows strict rules instead of models that learn and adapt.
This mindset also shaped how Apple spends money. Federighi pushed for on-device AI and Apple’s Private Cloud Compute system instead of massive data centers. Apple waited for AI costs to fall, betting that phones and Macs would handle most of the work.
ChatGPT changed his mind
Federighi did not ignore AI forever. After he tried ChatGPT in late 2022, he saw what large language models can do. He then told his teams to explore similar tools inside Apple products.
Still, Apple’s own models struggled to run well on devices. That pushed Federighi to approve deals with outside companies while Apple keeps building its own smaller models in the background.
Mike Rockwell now runs Siri and reports to Federighi. In the past, Rockwell called Federighi too conservative, yet today he works under his lead.
The shift put all of Apple’s AI direction in one place. That gives Apple a clearer plan, but it also means one person decides which ideas live and which ones die. The AI home screen already found out where that line sits.
