In a move to keep pace with the rapid advancements in artificial intelligence (AI) across the tech industry, Apple is reportedly expanding its internal testing of generative AI features for its popular Xcode programming software and planning to release them to third-party developers later this year, according to a report from Bloomberg.

The report, citing people familiar with the matter, suggests that Apple has been exploring the potential of integrating generative AI capabilities into various consumer-facing products as well. These include automatic playlist creation in Apple Music, AI-powered slideshows in Keynote, and chatbot-like search features for the company’s Spotlight search tool.

The envisioned upgrade for Spotlight could potentially enable iOS and macOS users to make natural language requests, akin to the conversational style of ChatGPT, to obtain weather reports or control features buried deep within applications. This move would bring Apple’s offerings closer to the AI-driven user experiences provided by its competitors.

While tech giants like Microsoft and Google have been at the forefront of releasing AI research and products in recent months, Apple has been more discreet in its approach. However, the company has made notable strides, such as the release of an open-source machine learning framework called MLX, which streamlines the process of training AI models on Apple’s silicon chips. Additionally, Apple unveiled a text-to-image editing AI model called MGIE and an AI animator named Keyframer, signaling its commitment to advancing AI capabilities.

Similar to Microsoft’s GitHub Copilot and Amazon’s CodeWhisperer, the AI-powered programming tool that Apple is currently working on will leverage large language models to predict and complete strings of code, potentially automating the process of writing code to test applications. Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella recently announced that GitHub Copilot had amassed 1 million paying users as of November 2023, highlighting the growing demand for such AI-driven tools in the developer community. Since its launch, GitHub has expanded Copilot’s capabilities, introducing features like a chat interface that guides coders in real-time and alerts them to potential code breaks.

Microsoft has hinted at further developments in AI for developers, stating that there will be more news about “Copilots” and AI at its Build 2024 event in May. Likewise, Apple may announce additional details about its AI plans during the annual Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) later this year.

While Apple CEO Tim Cook‘s statements about generative AI have been more conservative compared to his counterparts at Google and Microsoft, he confirmed during an investor call earlier this month that more generative AI features will be rolled out this year. According to sources cited by Bloomberg, Apple’s executives demonstrated many of the AI features for Xcode to the company’s board late last year.