By Joanna Stern Tim Cook
Apple CEO
1 Infinite Loop
Cupertino, CA 95015
Dear Mr. Cook,
I hope you had a great long weekend. The weather in New York was
beautiful.
I'll cut the small talk, though. I want to tell you about
something that's been happening on my iPhone.
See, I have this folder called Apple Apps. It used to be full of
the undeletable apps I had no use for -- Compass, Tips, Contacts. I
mean, does anyone, even at Apple, use Find Friends?
But lately the folder has been growing as I add once-essential
apps, including Photos, Music and Mail. Your competitors -- Google,
Facebook, Microsoft and others -- have been releasing superior
services that have taken their spots. And while Siri is still at
thumb's reach, I find myself talking far more to Amazon's Alexa
these days.
My iPhone is still reaping the benefits of the expanding smart
tech universe, but it isn't because of services made in
Cupertino.
At Facebook and Google developer conferences over the past few
weeks, your competitors demonstrated a future of artificially
intelligent software that can take care of things for us -- even on
Apple devices.
You may not see this as a problem as long as the millions of
iPhone owners use what you put on their plate. And I get that
you're focused on the features you think most people want to use.
But if Apple can't keep up, the iPhone risks becoming an empty
shell for other companies' services.
Why do I care when I already benefit from the other options?
Your users expect superior hardware and software integration, with
services and apps that compete -- all the while protecting user
data, as has been your stated mission. That's what I hope to see at
your upcoming developer conference, and here are particular areas
where I hope to see it:
Smarter Siri
Five years in, Siri is still great for setting an alarm or
making a phone call. But she can't carry on a conversation or
execute complex tasks across many apps and services the way her
rivals can.
Amazon's Alexa is only in the Echo speaker in my living room,
not with me 24/7, yet she is the closest thing I have to a
computer-based valet. Alexa is always listening, quicker to respond
(even if she doesn't always know the answer as well as Siri) and
works with third-party apps.
She can get me an Uber, she can order flowers via 1-800-FLOWERS,
she can play Backstreet Boys on Spotify. Plus, unlike the
hands-free "Hey Siri" prompt on my iPhone 6s, I don't have to
scream her name repeatedly when standing on the other side of the
room. Microsoft's Cortana integrated in Windows 10 may not yet work
with third-party apps, either, but it is similarly responsive on
the Dell XPS 13 from a few feet away.
The upcoming Google Assistant also promises to be able to carry
a conversation. Available across apps and in a new Google Home
speaker, the nongendered assistant will be able to help buy movie
tickets and make dinner reservations without you typing or
tapping.
I hope the reports that you may be rolling out third-party app
support for Siri and integrating her into the Mac are true. Your
colleagues at Apple wouldn't comment on the speculation when I
asked.
Still, that won't beat Google's real competitive advantage:
data-driven, predictive suggestions. While Siri reminded me that I
had to leave for my 3 p.m. flight to Hong Kong on Monday, the
Google iPhone app did that, too -- and then piled on loads of
helpful information: currency exchange, weather forecast, time zone
info, even tourist destinations I should consider seeing. Siri
exhibited similar shortcomings on the road when I compared your
CarPlay to Google's Android Auto.
What makes Google better at this, of course, is its cloud-based
data collection. It has records of what I search for in its search
engine or in its Maps service, and also knows the contents of my
email. By crunching all of that, Google has a pretty good picture
of me.
You, on the other hand, have said Apple doesn't want my data.
You do most of the processing on the phone itself, away from the
eyes of advertisers or hackers. While I applaud and appreciate your
assurance of privacy, my worry is that you simply can't afford to
maintain that mentality when the competition has such a great
advantage -- and users haven't shied away from their services.
At what point do you admit you need more user data? Your users
trust you, but I don't envy your position.
Smarter Messenger
The most important social network in my life is found inside my
Apple Messages app, but Apple is blowing a huge opportunity.
It isn't just that you're missing stickers or animated GIFs (but
please, can we get those and an easier way to search emojis?
Third-party keyboards can be a hassle). Within Facebook Messenger,
you can send money to a friend, order an Uber, even get fairly
quick customer service from airlines like United and Delta. The app
is a new portal to the Internet.
Facebook, Google and Microsoft are betting big on "bots" --
robots you can have two-way conversations with. I don't entirely
buy it, especially since Facebook's implementation is quite bad
right now. I don't want to chat with a CNN news bot who spams me
with news I don't care about, or a travel-booking bot who asks
incessant questions about my preferences.
Instead, something like Google's Allo seems far more appealing.
In the forthcoming messaging app for iOS and Android, you'll be
able to chat with the assistant to have it do things for you,
including get the news, travel times -- essentially anything you
could search the Web for. It can even suggest responses or Web
searches while you're in conversations with other humans.
The biggest weakness of Messages? Once-a-year updates. Forget
the big-feature reveal, just start rolling out improvements like
others do. It also would be great if the service worked on the Web,
Windows and Android. This is one of the most important services you
have -- treat it that way.
Smarter Photos and Music
Your lack of deep data mining is hurting you in less obvious
places, too. I've replaced your Music and Photos apps with ones
that work harder for me behind the scenes.
It wasn't only the original bugs and issues that landed Music in
my hidden folder, or the fact that on my Mac, I have to use the
awful iTunes software to access it. It was that Apple Music doesn't
try hard enough to understand me. Spotify is front and center on my
homescreen because every week it creates a tailored playlist just
for me based on what I like to listen to. It nails the suggestions
and helps me discover new artists.
Apple Music does have a fabulous selection of playlists. Yet
even though it's meant to be tailored for me, it never feels like
it totally gets the real me. At least not well enough to take me in
new, unexpected directions. Plus, Spotify has that social
integration. I love seeing what my friends are listening to.
Photos has suffered a similar fate. Like Apple Photos, Google
Photos lets you search by location or face. But Google trumps Apple
with deeper image recognition. Type in "wedding" and "mom" and it
brings up all photos I've taken at weddings with my mom. Then the
app's assistant automatically creates GIFs, albums or collages with
new photos and old. There's also that free, unlimited storage for
lower resolution images, while iCloud costs $3 a month for
200GB.
Whether it's Alexa chiming in when I have to take the chicken
out of the oven or Google sensing my plan and providing travel time
to the mall, these are glimpses of a future that isn't dominated by
little devices we control with taps and clicks.
Five short years from now, what will Apple's role be when the
interface is everywhere? Your superior hardware may continue to be
at the center of it all, but will you also create the smarts --
inside computers, homes and even cars -- that will power our
lives?
Speaking of, feel free to share any of those car plans with me
ASAP.
Sincerely,
Joanna
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
May 31, 2016 15:03 ET (19:03 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2016 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
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