The iPhone 16 was already going to be expensive, and now analysts are warning that you might have to shell out an extra monthly fee to use all of its features.
Reports indicate that users could pay up to $20 per month for Apple Intelligence, the tech company’s new flagship artificial intelligence system, premium software.
This system will introduce a suite of new AI features, including the ability to create custom images and ‘Genmojis,’ enhanced Siri capabilities, email generation through ChatGPT integration, and more.
“I think there will eventually be a gold, silver and bronze tier, and for the gold service they will charge per month,” Dan Ives, a technology sector analyst, told DailyMail.com.
Apple Intelligence is scheduled to launch in October as part of the iOS 18 software update. But by fall 2025, Apple could start charging for premium AI features, analysts warn.
Apple Intelligence is currently scheduled to launch in October as part of the iOS 18 software update, and will most likely be free at first, analysts say.
But launching an AI system and building the infrastructure needed to support it is expensive, leading analysts to wonder how the company plans to make up for its losses on this new service.
Apple won’t start charging for AI features until 2025 at the earliest, possibly around the time the iPhone 17 launches next September, Ives said.
This is because charging for these features up front would slow adoption. The idea is to get users hooked on premium features before introducing a fee.
“That’s in Apple’s playbook,” Ives said.
For example, when Apple TV+ launched in 2019, Apple offered a free one-year subscription to encourage people to sign up. Now, the free trial period is just one week.
Apple Intelligence will only be available on iPhone 15 and the upcoming iPhone 16.
Among other things, Apple Intelligence will allow users to create custom emojis, or “Genmojis.” It’s too early to say whether this feature will be paid or not.
It’s too early to say which features will be paid and which won’t, but Apple will likely stratify offerings based on how advanced they are and only charge for the highest tier, Ives said.
Analysts predict that if Apple does launch a fee for Apple Intelligence’s premium features, it will likely cost between $15 and $20 per month.
That’s roughly the same as what other tech companies charge for their most advanced AI offerings.
OpenAI, for example, charges $20 per month for its ChatGPT Plus subscription, which offers availability even when demand is high, faster response times, and priority access to new features.
Subscriptions help tech companies recoup the enormous cost of launching an AI product and building new data centers to support it.
The development of ChatGPT cost OpenAI approximately $540 million, according to a report by The information.
But Apple’s biggest competitors, Google and Samsung, will keep their AI offerings free for now — another reason Apple probably won’t introduce a fee right away.
Samsung’s Galaxy AI will be free until the end of 2025, and Google is offering a free year of its most expensive subscription, Google One, for new Chromebooks, which also gives access to the more advanced Gemini model.
Content creator and former Apple sales specialist Tyler Morgan said he definitely wouldn’t pay a monthly fee for Apple Intelligence’s premium features.
While it will be a while before Apple device users will have to pay for Apple Intelligence’s premium features, people have already begun to voice their frustrations online.
“Not going to happen. We’re too far down the road to subscription fatigue,” one person posted on a MacRumors Forum.
“These subscription-based models are getting completely ridiculous and I’m getting tired of them. I’m not going to pay up to $20 a month to use something that should be free when you buy a $1200 phone,” wrote another.
Even content creator and former Apple sales specialist Tyler Morgan said he wouldn’t pay for Apple Intelligence.
“I would probably pay to create content and then cancel quickly,” he told DailyMail.com.
He makes educational videos on TikTok about new Apple features and devices, as well as helpful tips for users.
But Ives, on the other hand, said the looming Apple Intelligence fees won’t scare most people away, and certainly won’t deter them from buying the new iPhone 16 after its launch in September.
“I think consumers are going to line up to buy the iPhone 16, and this is really going to be a scandal in the long run,” he said.
