Apple waives some AI cloud fees for small App Store developers

In short: Apple says smaller app developers can use its AI models in Apple’s cloud without paying certain usage fees.

What happened

Apple announced at its Worldwide Developers Conference that developers with fewer than 2 million first-time App Store downloads can use Apple’s “Foundation Models” through something Apple calls Private Cloud Compute, with no cloud API cost.

A foundation model is a general AI model that can do many tasks, like writing text or summarizing information. An API is a way for an app to “ask” that AI for help, like ordering from a menu instead of cooking yourself.

Apple positioned this as a way to help developers try ideas without getting stuck with extra cloud bills. It is similar to Apple’s Small Business Program, which lowers App Store commission rates for smaller developers.

Apple also said its Foundation Models tools are expanding to include image input, meaning apps can send pictures to the AI as well as text. The company added support for “server models,” which means developers can connect their apps to AI models that run on other companies’ cloud services when they need more complex capabilities.

Why it matters

Making AI features can be expensive because every request to a cloud AI system can cost money, especially when developers are testing and experimenting. By removing some of those fees for smaller developers, Apple is trying to make it cheaper for new and independent app makers to add AI features.

For regular users, this could mean more smaller apps adding AI features, not just big companies that can afford large cloud bills. It also signals that AI costs are becoming a bigger concern across the industry, even for large tech firms.

Source: TechCrunch AI