Apple Cuts Engineers' Daily AI Budget to $200, Plans Further Cuts
Apple lowered its engineers' daily AI spending cap from $300 to $200 in October and plans cuts to as low as $100, Bloomberg reported.
Apple Inc. is reducing employee budgets for artificial intelligence usage as part of a cost-cutting effort, even as the company seeks to put AI at the center of its operations, Bloomberg reported Wednesday, citing people with knowledge of the change.
Last month, Apple quietly lowered the daily spending cap for some engineers using AI models to $200 from $300, according to the people, who asked not to be identified because the discussions are private. The company is now planning further cuts for some engineering teams, potentially reducing their daily allowances to as little as $100. Outside engineering, Apple is reportedly weighing a daily limit as low as $25.
The change comes as companies across the industry have been pushing staff to use AI as much as possible, a trend sometimes called tokenmaxxing, with bills for those tokens coming due and prompting a shift toward rationing. Apple had worked to integrate AI into its engineering processes, and the cuts mark a reversal of that spending.
Apple did not respond to a request for comment from TechCrunch. TechCrunch also cited concerns persisting about a gap between what AI costs to build and run and the productivity gains the technology is supposed to generate.
The sources do not give an exact date for when the cap reduction took effect, nor which specific teams beyond engineering are affected. It is also unclear how the lower caps will affect Apple's internal AI projects, including those tied to chip development.
AAPL shares were up 5.3% in delayed trading at $349.51.