Friday Q&A
Today's Above Avalon Daily update includes the following story:
Friday Q&A
Hello everyone. Here is a special Friday edition of Q&A. It’s been a while since we last did a Q&A. Based on the number of incoming questions, it’s probably a good idea to run an installment more often.
The update covered the following questions:
If the U.S. Supreme Court rules the IEEPA tariffs to be illegal does that mean the tariff cost Apple reported is the only cost that goes away (or gets refunded depending on the ruling), or is Apple also paying non-IEEPA tariffs?
Do you think Apple’s share price will be affected by an overall bubble in AI tech shares bursting? (Or a balloon deflating!)
What does Apple think its stock is worth?
What is your opinion regarding the possibility of Apple acquiring Curiosity Stream or licensing their contents?
When is Apple releasing an updated Apple TV 4K unit?
Why didn’t Apple didn’t see the need for core technologies to power AI features back in 2022 (like many other big tech companies)? When Apple did see it, why didn’t they place a big bet on developing their own LLM rapidly (like other big tech companies) to become independent?
Are you concerned by the continued poaching of Apple employees by Jony Ive / OpenAI?
Did Apple make a mistake cancelling Project Titan?
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Apple and Tech Musings From My Vacation
Hello everyone. It feels good to be back after a mini vacation and some time away. Even though last week was relatively quiet on the news front, my “possible discussion” list for these updates now sits at 20 topics.
The plan of attack is to get back into the swing of things gradually with some musings and observations that came to me last week while away.
Let’s jump in.
Apple and Tech Musings From My Vacation
Each year, taking some time off during the summer has allowed me to get fresh perspective when it comes to tech and gadget usage. For example, a few years back going a week without anything besides touch-based devices made my eventual return to macOS and a mouse/cursor feel odd almost as if my brain needed to be rewired. The experience offered a fresh feel for differences in intuitiveness. In addition to different device usage trends, vacations will often bring about new needs and use cases for certain apps and services.
For this year’s “vacation tech musings,” four topics jumped out at me:
Apple Intelligence features in Photos (iPhone).
Downsides found with unlimited streaming content.
Meta’s grip on young adults.
Apple Watch’s continued power.
Apple Intelligence features in Photos (iPhone). Apple positions three features within Photos as powered by Apple Intelligence:
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Siri’s Promise, My Issues With Siri, How to Gauge Siri’s Progress
Today's Above Avalon Daily email contains the following stories:
Siri’s Promise
My Issues With Siri
How to Gauge Siri’s Progress
We will continue our discussion from yesterday regarding Siri. There is value found in assessing the promise Apple saw in Siri when acquiring the company. We then go over three issues that have led to some Siri friction. The update concludes with my thoughts on how Siri's progress can be properly measured.
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An audio version of this update is available to members who have the podcast add-on attached to their membership.
Member Privileges and Benefits
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Apple Delays Siri Features, What’s Going On?, Broader Implications
Today's Above Avalon Daily email contains the following stories:
Apple Delays Siri Features
What’s Going On?
Broader Implications
Welcome to a new week. Today's update will be dedicated to Apple's Siri news. Apple announced some Siri features that were unveiled as part of Apple Intelligence features need more time before being released. There's much to talk about, so let's jump right in.
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Apple’s AI Strategy, My Vision for Siri, Hardware’s Importance
Today's Above Avalon Daily email contains the following stories:
Apple’s AI Strategy
My Vision for Siri
Hardware’s Importance
Today’s discussion will begin with how the DeepSeek news impacts Apple. Our focus will then turn to Apple’s AI strategy. It’s been surprising how few observers have connected the dots. Next, we discuss my vision for Siri. The update concludes with why hardware is gaining importance.
Let’s jump in.
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Looking Ahead at Apple’s 2025
Today's Above Avalon Daily email contains the following story:
Looking Ahead at Apple’s 2025
Hello everyone. It feels good to get back into the swing of things. We will kick off the 10th year of this newsletter with a look ahead at Apple in 2025. There are a few things that have been on my mind. The discussion will likely flow into tomorrow’s update as well.
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Apple Releases Second Wave of Apple Intelligence, My Initial Thoughts on Visual Intelligence, Image Playground Beats Expectations
Today's Above Avalon Daily email contains the following stories:
Apple Releases Second Wave of Apple Intelligence
My Initial Thoughts on Visual Intelligence
Image Playground Beats Expectations
With iOS 18.2, iPadOS 18.2, and macOS Sequoia 15.2 now out, the second wave of Apple Intelligence features has gone live for the U.S. and localized English for Australia, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, South Africa, and the UK.
For many Apple users with supported hardware, this second wave will be the one that truly showcases Apple Intelligence. While Writing Tools and things like notification summaries may have their audiences, this second release phase includes Image Playground, Genmoji, Image Wand, visual intelligence, and ChatGPT integration, among other features.
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Choose either a monthly or annual membership. Payment is hosted by MoonClerk and secured by Stripe. Apple Pay and other mobile payment options are accepted. After signup, use this link to update your payment information and membership status at any time. Contact me with any questions.
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Member Privileges and Benefits
Become an Above Avalon member and receive the following privileges and benefits:
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Deconstructing Apple’s Product Event (iPhone)
Today's Above Avalon Daily email contains the following story:
Deconstructing Apple’s Product Event (iPhone)
Happy Monday. Today's update will conclude my Apple event review. We will go over the iPhone segment of the presentation.
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Choose either a monthly or annual membership. Payment is hosted by MoonClerk and secured by Stripe. Apple Pay and other mobile payment options are accepted. After signup, use this link to update your payment information and membership status at any time. Contact me with any questions.
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Member Privileges and Benefits
Become an Above Avalon member and receive the following privileges and benefits:
Exclusive Analysis. Receive my daily newsletter and reports containing analysis and perspective, 100% related to Apple.
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How Apple Intelligence Was Developed, Ranking Apple Intelligence Features, AAPL’s Wacky Price Action
Today's Above Avalon Daily email contains the following stories:
How Apple Intelligence Was Developed
Ranking Apple Intelligence Features
AAPL’s Wacky Price Action
There is value found in spending time on the details regarding how Apple Intelligence was developed and functions. We will then go over my thoughts on the various Apple Intelligence features, ranking the features from most impressive to most concerning. We will then address AAPL price action.
Above Avalon membership is required to read this update. Members can read the update here.
Above Avalon Membership
Choose either a monthly or annual membership. Payment is hosted by MoonClerk and secured by Stripe. Apple Pay and other mobile payment options are accepted. After signup, use this link to update your payment information and membership status at any time. Contact me with any questions.
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Member Privileges and Benefits
Become an Above Avalon member and receive the following privileges and benefits:
Exclusive Analysis. Receive my daily newsletter and reports containing analysis and perspective, 100% related to Apple.
Earnings Model. Access my working Apple earnings model (an Excel file that also works in Numbers).
Member Archive. Access all previous analysis sent to members.
Member Forums. Interact with other members in the Above Avalon team in Slack.
Priority Email Access. Receive timely responses to all email inquiries.
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Above Avalon Support. Play an active role in supporting Above Avalon as an independent voice and resource.