Initially highlighted by Bloomberg, Yang was an ascending Apple executive who was recently appointed to lead Apple’s emerging “Answers, Knowledge, and Information” team. The mission of the AKI team is to enhance the Siri user experience by delivering precise answers to general knowledge inquiries. Reports indicate that the team also aims to make Siri’s interactions more conversational, akin to existing chatbots like ChatGPT.
Yang’s exit signifies yet another challenge for Apple’s apparently declining roster of AI expertise. Bloomberg mentions that Kang was “considered the most significant executive involved in” Apple’s new and ambitious version of Siri. In total, Apple has seen over 10 individuals depart from its premier AI and machine learning groups in the past year alone. For instance, in August, Ruoming Pang transitioned from Apple to Meta after receiving a compensation package in the neighborhood of $200 million. Pang’s exit was a substantial loss as he led Apple’s Foundational Model team and contributed to the development of the foundational models that support Apple Intelligence. Additionally, Meta also recruited several leading engineers from Pang’s team, including Tom Gunter and Bowen Zhang.
