Apple's AI chief to step down as critics say the company is falling behind

John Giannandrea, senior vice president for Machine Learning and AI Strategy, will be replaced by Amar Subramanya, who oversaw the development of Google's AI.

Mr Giannandrea will continue to be involved in Apple as an advisor before stepping down in Spring 2026.

He built a "world-class team" that is currently responsible for Apple Foundation Models, Search and Knowledge, Machine Learning Research, and AI Infrastructure.

Mr Subramanya was most recently the corporate vice president of AI at Microsoft, and previously spent 16 years at Google, where he was head of engineering for Google’s Geminia.

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"We are thankful for the role John played in building and advancing our AI work, helping Apple continue to innovate and enrich the lives of our users," said Tim Cook, Apple’s CEO.

"AI has long been central to Apple’s strategy, and we are pleased to welcome Amar to Craig’s leadership team and to bring his extraordinary AI expertise to Apple.

"In addition to growing his leadership team and AI responsibilities with Amar’s joining, Craig has been instrumental in driving our AI efforts, including overseeing our work to bring a more personalized Siri to users next year."

Apple has been slow to roll out its AI systems, and has been accused of falling behind competitors.