Apple is staring down 2 different futures for the iPhone

Apple, for its part, seems confident that AI will put iPhones on a path toward a better future. Bloomberg reported in July that the company has told suppliers and partners that it expects the iPhone 16 to help grow shipments by around 10% later this year.

That said, it seems painfully aware of the two different futures facing its most important device, which is why it has been very busy this year in its efforts to find entirely new products to keep consumers tied to the Appleverse, or what Steve Jobs liked to call its “next big thing.”

Whether it will find success in those efforts is another matter. Its mixed reality push following the launch of the Vision Pro in February appears to be off to a slow start, with a high entry-point price tag of $3,500 and a lack of apps deterring would-be buyers.

The company also seems to be exploring a big push into personal robotics as it looks to people’s homes as a potential new growth area, Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman reported in April, noting that there’s no guarantee this will happen as the project is at an early stage.

Earlier this year, meanwhile, Apple had to confront the fact that some new areas remain a step too far for it after ditching its electric vehicle project that was a decade in the making.

That means it’ll need Apple Intelligence to really keep consumers interested in iPhones. If it doesn’t, it might need a new plan.