Apple's AI-Driven 'FacePod' Thing
Mark Gurman
Far more questions than answers in some of the new details Gurman is reporting about Apple's new "tabletop" device:
Apple, seeking new sources of revenue, is moving forward with development of a pricey tabletop home device that combines an iPad-like display with a robotic limb.
The company now has a team of several hundred people working on the device, which uses a thin robotic arm to move around a large screen, according to people with knowledge of the matter. The product, which relies on actuators to tilt the display up and down and make it spin 360 degrees, would offer a twist on home products like Amazon's Echo Show 10 and Meta's discontinued Portal.
The device is envisioned as a smart home command center, videoconferencing machine and remote-controlled home security tool, said the people, who asked not to be identified because the work isn’t public. The project — codenamed J595 — was approved by Apple’s executive team in 2022 but has started to formally ramp up in recent months, they said.
While I think I understand the idea in concept – it sounds almost exactly like what I thought Apple should build during the pandemic, which is to say, it sounds like Meta's Portal device – I'm not 100% sure I understand the market Apple is aiming this at right now, as we no longer live in a world of lockdowns. I still believe Apple has largely dropped the ball in the 'Home' segment, clearly with the initial HomePod, which was the wrong strategy in the era of Alexa everywhere, but even the "new" HomePod hasn't exactly blown the doors off (insert joke about how the sound quality was actually slightly degraded before the joke about it now coming in a new shade of black). The Apple TV remains a good product but it could have and should have been so much more. If we want to go even further back, Apple clearly made a mistake in killing off the AirPort.
At the same time, Apple does "own" the living room in a way – it's just that the devices that own such space are iPhones and iPads. So I guess this "tabletop" device is an attempt to extend upon that success. But even the "tabletop" framing – which, to be fair, could simply be Bloomberg's framing – is strange. Beyond making it sound like Apple is making a board game, what table is this device going to be placed on? A living room table in front of a TV? A kitchen table? Again, people are used to using devices in the living room in their hands and laps.
Apple’s industrial design team has been exploring tabletop robotic concepts for years, but there wasn’t consensus within the company — including the software engineering organization and marketing teams — over whether to move forward.
Apple’s marketing group was concerned that consumers wouldn’t be willing to pay for such a product. Top software engineering executives, meanwhile, fretted about the staffing resources it would require to build the necessary software. But Chief Executive Officer Tim Cook is seen as a proponent of the device — as is John Ternus, the company’s head of hardware engineering.
This makes it sound as if even many inside Apple aren't sold on this product. But Tim Cook is – and the person who may succeed Tim Cook is, so...
Look, if the above is true, I actually respect it. It sounds like Cook may be willing to gamble a bit in trying to skate to where the puck is going, as it were. Of course, the puck may not be actually going there, and they may be playing football and not hockey, but still... Cook still gets knocked as not being a product-driven leader at Apple. To keep mixing the metaphors, he needs to take some swings and he's certainly earned the right to!
And maybe this report is making a bigger deal out of this project than what it actually is. Maybe Apple views this as just a new version of the HomePod – the 'FacePod'? Then again...
Apple has now decided to prioritize the device’s development and is aiming for a debut as early as 2026 or 2027, according to the people. The company is looking to get the price down to around $1,000. But with years to go before an expected release, the plans could theoretically change.
In a sign of support, Apple has made the project the sole responsibility of Kevin Lynch, a veteran executive. He serves as vice president of technology and oversaw the self-driving car and, until recently, Apple’s smartwatch and health software engineering efforts.
At $200 - $300, this device sounds interesting. At $1,000, this device better have a clear use case. And it better be more than as a great FaceTime device, because the iPhone and iPad are already great FaceTime devices. Putting Kevin Lynch in place is a clear sign of how serious they're taking this project, but they clearly were with the car project too, which Lynch stepped in to try to save, but could not.
The idea is for the tabletop product to be primarily controlled using the Siri digital assistant and upcoming features in Apple Intelligence. The device could respond to commands, such as “look at me,” by repositioning the screen to focus on the person saying the words — say, during a video call. It also could understand different voices and adjust its focus accordingly. Current models in testing run a customized version of the iPad operating system.
This reads like Apple is just trying to come up with hardware concepts they can wrap around Apple Intelligence to demonstrate its capabilities, which is obviously not a good way to design new products, so I'm sure that's an unfair read.
I was far more interested in Gurman's earlier reporting of a robotic device that would actually move (rather than just moving the screen). That felt like step one towards an inevitable real-world robotic future. Perhaps this is more a step 0. Getting the "body" right, as it were, before giving it "legs" (or wheels, undoubtedly first). But again, this is the interesting aspect of this project I can see if I squint: the first phase of a move into robotics. And while I'm clearly skeptical of the sales prospects based off of this reporting, if it looks exactly like an iMac G4 – aka the Desk Lamp iMac – I'm sold, quite literally. Loved that design.
As I wrote back in April on some other earlier reporting on the project:
This almost sounds like a screen that will have arms, which would be humorous – Nintendo R.O.B. anyone? – but what Gurman undoubtedly means here is an arm that supports the display and allows it to move. Think: the beloved iMac G4 – aka the "iLamp". I, like many, loved this iMac. I would buy a smaller FaceTime-focused version – that moves (!) – in a heartbeat. Could this be an iPad stand?
That would certainly be one way to bring the cost down, BYOi – Bring Your Own iPad.
