Apple and Meta collaborate on open AI model for Mac computers

Summarised from 4 outlets · Updated 15 Oct, 18:32 · Archive

Apple and Meta are collaborating to enable developers to run Meta's Muse Spark Open AI model locally on Mac Studio computers.

Apple and Meta have announced a collaboration to enable developers to run Meta's Muse Spark Open, an open-weight AI model, on Apple's Mac Studio computers. The model contains 816 billion parameters and uses a mixture-of-experts architecture. According to the companies, it is the most capable open-weight model available under a license allowing limited commercial use.

Developers will be able to pair between two and four Mac Studio computers to run the model locally, which the companies say provides security benefits and saves money compared to cloud-based alternatives. The model will enable users to code, analyse video and perform other tasks. Running Muse Spark Open requires approximately 1 terabyte of RAM. Engadget reports that a setup with four 256GB M5 Ultra Mac Studios would cost roughly $38,000.

The collaboration marks a significant shift in Silicon Valley dynamics. For years, Apple and Meta had avoided public partnerships and regarded each other warily, particularly after Apple introduced privacy changes in 2021 that limited targeting capabilities for digital advertisers. Meta estimated that change would cut its revenue by $10 billion in 2022. Meta AI chief Alexandr Wang said the partnership was possible because Apple's Mac Studios provide enough memory to run large open-weight models that are impractical on most personal computers. Representatives from both companies declined to say whether this collaboration would lead to a deeper relationship.

How it is being reported

• Meta and Apple team up to make Muse AI models run better on MacsMeta announced the Muse Spark Open AI model today, claiming that it's the "most capable US open-weight model to date." But the company also says that it's the "the first model in its class" that can "run on your desktop using two Apple M5 Ultra Mac Studios with the latest MLX framework." Meta and Apple, […]The Verge · 15 Oct, 19:15
• Meta and Apple Bring Muse Spark Open AI Model to Mac StudioMeta today announced the release of Muse Spark Open, which it says is the "most capable U.S. open-weight model to date." Meta worked with Apple to bring Muse Spark Open to the Mac, and the model can run on a desktop setup with two 512GB Apple M5 Ultra Mac Studios running the latest MLX framework. Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg thanked Apple CEO John Ternus for working with Meta . Muse Spark Open has 816 billion total parameters with 42 billion active parameters and a 1 million-token context window. It is meant for coding and agentic work, and Meta says it excels at extended tasks, multi-step…MacRumors · 15 Oct, 18:47
• Meta built a huge open-weight AI model for Macs, but you'll need 1TB of RAM to run itMuse Spark Open is "the most capable US open-weight model to date," the company says.Engadget · 15 Oct, 18:02
• Apple and Meta team up to make Muse AI model run on Mac computersApple and Meta are collaborating to make Muse Spark Open easier to run locally on clustered Mac Studio systems, according to the companies.CNBC · 15 Oct, 18:00

In this story: Apple · Meta · Tim Cook · Mark Zuckerberg · John Ternus · Alexandr Wang

This summary was written by AI from the headlines and standfirsts above, and states as fact only what at least two outlets report. How we use AI · Report a problem