Apple has long been stingy with the amount of RAM it includes with its devices, and the iPhone 16 lineup will be no different. During an interview Johny Srouji, Apple’s Senior Vice President of Hardware Technologies, revealed that all the forthcoming models will come with 8GB of RAM.
This is in stark contrast to Android devices that often come with 12GB or more of RAM, such as the Google Pixel 9 series and Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6. Both sets of devices are positioned as AI powerhouses similar to how the iPhone 16 is being marketed. Yet, it seems that Samsung and Google have opted to provide more memory for the demands of AI workloads users will be performing.
Srouji admits that the reason the RAM upgrades are happening across the board is because of Apple Intelligence. He said that “Apple Intelligence was a major feature that led us to believe that we need to get to 8GB.” However, when speaking about the memory situation, he also notes that as a company “we don’t want to be wasteful in many ways.” However, this focus on being less “wasteful” might end up hurting users, making it so that the iPhone 16 ages less gracefully as Apple Intelligence and AI-powered applications continue to evolve. After all, it’s widely understood that LLMs (Large Language Models) and generative AI consume large pools of memory for processing.
While Apple certainly has complete control over hardware and software in its devices, the decision to only include 8GB of RAM appears to be short sighted. Although it feels completely on brand for the company to be pinching every penny possible, to maximize profit, as its about to launch a device that will supposedly lead it to its AI-enabled future.
Hopefully the decision to only include 8GB of RAM doesn’t end up hurting customers who are choosing this version of the iPhone to jump head first into Apple Intelligence.