The Information: ‘With Google Deal, Apple’s Craig Federighi Plots a Cautious Course in AI’

Aaron “Homeboy” Tilley and Wayne Ma, reporting for The Information (paywalled, alas, and with a miserly gift-link policy):

But there are also potential risks to making Federighi head of AI. Giving oversight of AI to him reflects Apple’s cautious approach to the technology. He is known at Apple as a penny-pincher who keeps a tight rein on salaries and hesitates to invest in risky projects when the payoff from them isn’t clear, according to people who have worked with him. He tends to scrutinize every detail of his team’s expenses, down to their budgets for bananas and other office snacks, those people said.

Meanwhile, Apple’s rivals are pouring vast amounts of capital into AI, building data centers and paying fortunes to woo AI researchers.

I have no idea what Federighi’s stance is on break-room bananas, but it seems a stretch to think it offers clues to Apple’s strategy on data centers.

For years, lieutenants of Federighi would try to get him on board with AI. He often shot those efforts down, former Apple executives said. For example, he rejected proposals from his team to use AI to dynamically change the iPhone home screen, believing it would disorient users, who are used to knowing where their apps are located, said former Apple employees familiar with the proposal.

★ Thursday, 22 January 2026