A week in which Apple's biggest construction sites broke open all at once: in Luxembourg, a court upheld the gatekeeper designation, while in California Apple itself went to court – against its AI partner OpenAI. In between: a chip deal running through 2031, an Emmy record and a startup squeezing a surprisingly large AI model onto the iPhone. Between Brussels, Cupertino and Munich, barely a day passed without a headline.
Rarely have Apple's major conflicts converged as tightly as they did this week – and nearly all of them revolve around the same question: who sets the rules? While the gatekeeper designation was being litigated in Luxembourg, Tim Cook and his designated successor sat down with the Bavarian Minister-President and made the case for less regulation from Brussels – a meeting with symbolic weight shortly before the leadership change at the top of the company. In parallel, the power struggle with OpenAI escalated, while in the background looms the question of how much artificial intelligence Apple will bring directly onto the iPhone. Seven days in which regulation, AI and the supply chain were more tightly interwoven than usual.
🔥 Story of the Week: Apple Remains an EU Gatekeeper
It is a defeat that was foreseeable – and yet it marks a turning point: on Wednesday, the General Court of the European Union dismissed all three actions with which Apple sought to overturn its gatekeeper designation. For iOS and the App Store, the judges upheld the designation; the action concerning iMessage was declared inadmissible. Apple therefore remains a gatekeeper under the Digital Markets Act – with all the obligations that come with it, from alternative app marketplaces to interoperability.
Because this was the first-instance ruling, Apple could still appeal to the European Court of Justice; nothing has been announced officially, but it is considered likely. For users in Germany, Austria and the EU, the case captures the full ambivalence of the DMA: on one side, sideloading and greater choice of default apps; on the other, precisely the set of rules Apple cites to explain why the new Siri generation has yet to launch in the EU on iPhone and iPad. Switzerland, as a non-EU country, falls outside all of this and receives Apple's features like the rest of the world.
📰 What Else Mattered
The chip pact with Broadcom runs through 2031. Despite Apple's own chip push, the two companies are extending their partnership for wireless and connectivity components – when it comes to Wi-Fi and Bluetooth, in-house development runs into limits. For Broadcom, which generates roughly a fifth of its revenue with Apple, it is a billion-dollar business.
Chat control is back. The EU Parliament once again permitted the voluntary scanning of unencrypted messages through 2028 – via a procedural manoeuvre, even though a majority of those present voted against it. End-to-end encrypted services such as iMessage remain exempt; on Apple's side, unencrypted iCloud Mail is affected.
In China, Apple climbs back to second place. Steep discounts on the iPhone 17 Pro line were enough for second place in the summer quarter. The catch: the overall market slumped by 13 percent, and Apple's own sales were down as well – though less sharply than those of its rivals.
The Translate app learns nine new languages. In iOS 27, Apple expands the app by nine additional languages, covering considerably more travel and everyday situations.
WhatsApp is getting a green dot. The messenger will use a green dot to show which contacts are currently online – handy for some, another piece of visibility for others.
💡 Rumor of the Week: A Bigger AI Model for the iPhone
A young startup claims to have run an AI language model with 27 billion parameters entirely on an iPhone 17 Pro – larger than Apple's own most powerful on-device model. This is said to be made possible by aggressive compression that shrinks the model from around 54 gigabytes to under 4, reportedly without any loss in performance. According to reports, Apple has already met with the people behind it.
The appeal is obvious: more AI running directly on the device would make Apple less dependent on its own cloud – and somewhat less dependent on Google's Gemini technology, which currently handles the more demanding requests of the new Siri generation. Skepticism is still warranted, however: so far these are talks, not a partnership, and the bold performance claims have not been independently verified. From July 14, the startup plans to open up its model; only then can the claims be measured against reality.
📊 Number of the Week: 87
87 – that's how many Emmy nominations Apple TV collected this year, a new record and a clear jump from last year's 79. Among platforms, that is enough for third place behind HBO Max and Netflix – yet in the marquee categories of drama and comedy, Apple led every streaming service. The record is driven by two series that only launched in 2026: the horror comedy Widow's Bay with 19 nominations and the sci-fi drama Pluribus with 18. All six of the most-nominated titles are Apple Originals and are available in Germany, Austria and Switzerland for 9.99 euros a month.
👎 Flop of the Week: No More Affordable Vision Pro
Hopes for an affordable Apple Vision Pro are fading into the distance: according to a report, supplier Samsung Display is winding down development of the cheaper display and will shut the project down by September. That very panel would have been the prerequisite for a noticeably more affordable headset. Instead, Apple is shifting its resources to lightweight Apple Glasses, whose launch is expected in 2027. For anyone interested, that means: for now, only the current Vision Pro remains, at around the 4,000-euro mark – an affordable entry point is off the table for the foreseeable future.
🔭 What's Coming Next Week
The beta phase continues: iOS 27 and iOS 26.6 are approaching their next round, with iOS 26.6 expected toward the end of July. As early as July 14, the startup mentioned above plans to open up its on-device model – a first real test for the promises surrounding large AI models on the iPhone. And the view ahead turns to July 30: that's when Apple reports its results for the third fiscal quarter – expected to be Tim Cook's final earnings call before handing over to John Ternus.
💬 My Take
For years, Apple was cast as the great AI straggler – yet this week shows the company has found an answer of its own, just not one that looks like a loud chatbot race. Instead of pushing an ever-larger model into the cloud, more intelligence is meant to move back onto the iPhone, Siri AI has now reached the Apple Watch with the latest watchOS beta, and where outside models are involved, the system will ask for permission via a pop-up before any data goes to Google. That is the classic Apple bet: not the fastest technology, but the most deeply integrated and the best shielded.
Two things cloud the picture. First, the bill: anyone who wants the Home app's new AI features ends up on the 2 TB iCloud plan – in Germany, from 9.99 euros a month. Privacy as a selling point, but not for free. Second, the nervousness: that Apple, of all moments, is now taking OpenAI to court, accusing its partner of stealing trade secrets for its own AI hardware, sounds less like confidence than like the realization that the real battle is no longer being fought over the smartphone, but over the next AI device. Apple has caught up – but the chase is far from over.
📚 From Our Archive
Apple and Privacy: Why No Competitor Can Keep Up – Apple's most important counterargument in the DMA dispute is its own approach to privacy; this overview explains what the company builds its privacy architecture on.
Why the iPhone Isn't Affected by the EU's 2027 Replaceable Battery Rule – that rules from Brussels don't automatically overhaul every Apple product is evident beyond the DMA as well, in the upcoming battery regulation.
Between courtrooms in Luxembourg and California, a chip deal running through 2031 and an Emmy record, Apple emerges as a company fighting on several fronts at once – regulated, courted and going on the attack itself.
Until next Sunday, Apfelpatient wishes you relaxing reading and a good start to the week. (Image: Shutterstock / dearinjan)
