Apple on Monday announced a major reshuffle in its artificial intelligence division, naming Amar Subramanya as the company's new Vice President of AI. Subramanya replaces long-time AI head John Giannandrea, marking Apple’s most significant leadership transition since it introduced the Apple Intelligence in 2024.
Amar Subramanya is a seasoned AI researcher and engineering leader with experience at some of the world’s top technology companies. A graduate of Bangalore University, he later earned a PhD in Computer Science from the University of Washington, specialising in machine learning, large-scale systems, and natural language technologies.
Over his 16-year career at Google, he rose to become head of engineering for Gemini, the company’s flagship AI assistant, and also collaborated closely with DeepMind. Earlier this year, he moved to Microsoft as Corporate Vice President of AI, where he worked on enterprise and consumer AI systems, including models powering Microsoft Copilot.
In a recent post, he described Microsoft’s culture as driven, ambitious, and low ego, a comment that reflected his enthusiasm at the time.
Despite joining Microsoft only months ago, Subramanya has made a quick shift to Apple. As part of his new role, he will report directly to Craig Federighi, Apple’s Senior Vice President of Software Engineering.
The timing of this appointment is critical. Apple has been under pressure for lagging behind rivals such as Google, Microsoft, Samsung, and even emerging AI startups, in rolling out advanced generative AI features. Apple’s slower rollout has been a point of discussion among users and developers.
Apple says Subramanya will now lead core teams responsible for foundation models, AI research, and AI safety. Duties previously overseen by Giannandrea will be redistributed between Chief Operating Officer Sabih Khan and Services Chief Eddy Cue, hinting at a major structural shift in Apple’s AI strategy.
With this leadership change, Apple is signalling a strong push to accelerate development, expand Apple Intelligence across its devices, and regain momentum in the global AI race.
