Apple and Meta have joined forces to bring Meta's Muse Spark Open, an 816-billion-parameter AI model, to Apple's high-end Macs. The collaboration allows the model to run locally on two or four connected Mac Studios powered by Apple's M5 Ultra chips, utilizing Apple's MLX framework. Alexandr Wang, Meta's AI chief, described the partnership as a moment where "mommy and daddy" are playing nice again, marking a significant shift in the relationship between the two companies.
Meta released Muse Spark Open as the most powerful U.S.-developed open-weight AI model available. The model is similar to Meta's existing Muse Spark 1.3 but is designed for broader accessibility. By making the model free to download with a license allowing commercial use, Meta joins other Western AI companies in offering open-weight systems. These systems aim to reduce AI costs and provide companies with greater control over their infrastructure, presenting an alternative to the Chinese AI ecosystem.
The technical implementation highlights a proof of concept for local AI capabilities. Running a model of this scale on Apple hardware suggests companies can build their own AI systems without relying exclusively on Nvidia GPUs or proprietary models from leading AI labs. This shift could alter the economics of AI by offering developers more alternatives. The model will also be available through cloud providers and developer tools, expanding its reach beyond local hardware.
Daniel Gross, a former Apple executive now at Meta, played a key role in facilitating the collaboration. Wang stated that Gross helped bring the two sides together after several months of work. The partnership sidesteps historical privacy conflicts because the model runs locally, meaning Meta does not receive users' prompts or other information. Wang confirmed that Meta has no control or visibility into how developers use the model on their hardware.
The alliance contrasts with the long-standing rivalry between Apple and Meta, which has been defined by disputes over privacy and business models. In 2018, Apple executive chairman Tim Cook responded to a question about Facebook's Cambridge Analytica scandal by saying he would not be in that situation, a comment Mark Zuckerberg called "extremely glib." Tensions escalated in 2021 when Apple introduced privacy protections that impacted Facebook's advertising business. According to the Wall Street Journal, Zuckerberg told employees that Facebook needed to inflict pain on Apple during that dispute.
This collaboration fits into a broader trend of shifting alliances in the AI industry. Anthropic is leasing up to $15 billion per year of computing capacity from Elon Musk's SpaceX while competing with his AI company. Meanwhile, Microsoft is investing in rival Anthropic and incorporating its Claude models into its own products. In Washington, progressive Sen. Bernie Sanders and MAGA strategist Steve Bannon have aligned on calls for stricter regulations regarding artificial intelligence.
While the partnership does not resolve all differences between Apple and Meta, it demonstrates that their interests can align despite ongoing competition. The current collaboration focuses on demonstrating that Meta's models can run locally on Apple computers. A more significant step would involve Apple incorporating Meta's models into Apple Intelligence, which would give Meta a role in powering Apple's own AI features. For now, the arrangement allows both companies to showcase their respective strengths: Meta gains wide availability for its open models, while Apple highlights the capabilities of its most powerful computers.