With Apple Intelligence-powered iPhones, smartphone ads showcasing AI in action get a boost

With a new iPhone lineup powered by Apple Intelligence, Apple Inc. has made a loud and clear statement in the rapidly accelerating artificial intelligence (AI) race, where smartphones are now the hottest battlefield.

First introduced in June 2024, Apple Intelligence is the iPhone maker’s AI platform and serves as the nerve centre of the new smartphones. The iPhone 16 and 16 Pro are equipped with specialised chips designed to run Apple’s AI offerings, which include writing tools, personalised emojis, a new camera button that allows anyone to shoot like a Hollywood director, and even an upgraded, smarter Siri.

Two rather bland ads, lacking Apple’s usual flair, attempt to show how the AI on the new iPhones can make life easier and more fun. It’s possible that the severe criticism Apple faced for its iPad spot earlier this year—in which the device was pitched as a superior tool for creating art, even surpassing human skill—may have influenced this cautious approach.

Consumers seem resistant to ads depicting AI as a replacement for creativity. For instance, Google Pixel’s ad during the Olympics, which featured a father using generative AI Gemini to write a letter to his daughter’s favourite athlete, was met with backlash.

"The father in the video is not encouraging his daughter to learn to express herself. Instead of guiding her to use her own words and communicate authentically, he is teaching her to rely on AI for this critical human skill... Google should be ashamed of this messaging," wrote Shelly Palmer, professor of advanced media at Syracuse University’s S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications, in a blog post.

Despite this criticism, smartphone brands are increasingly highlighting AI features in their ads to attract consumers. Apple entering the picture only bolsters this trend because considering the brand's aspirational ethos across the globe, what it offers or advertises is seen and discussed across the world.

Google India ran a full-page ad in The Economic Times to promote the Google Pixel 9 Pro Fold yesterday (September 10)—the same morning India woke up to Apple’s announcements. The print ad showcased all the new foldable smartphone’s features, with Gemini, of course, taking centre stage.

Other smartphone brands are not far behind in this AI race. Back in January, Samsung introduced Galaxy AI, its AI suite for the S24 Ultra, S24 Plus, and S24. A four-minute ad titled The Artful Awakening shows a Samsung user effortlessly capturing shots from a distance inside a crowded museum using the AI.

Oppo wasn’t far behind either. After a cast coup from Wake Up Sid for a campaign, Ranbir Kapoor showed off the Reno 12 series' AI tools, which aim to make everyone feel like a professional Vogue photographer.

AI is clearly the new hot trend in smartphone advertising, and brands have no intention of stopping. However, how they choose to portray AI in action—especially in light of the reactions to recent Apple and Google ads—will shape the next year of smartphone marketing.