Apple Silicon Has Competition!

Summary of Apple Silicon Has Competition!

by MKBHD

1h 34m•June 5, 2026
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Overview of Apple Silicon Has Competition!

This Waveform episode covers a packed stretch of tech news ahead of WWDC, with the biggest themes being Apple’s upcoming AI/Siri push, Nvidia’s new ARM-based “RTX Spark” platform as a potential Apple Silicon rival, Google’s new controls for AI Overviews, and Microsoft’s growing obsession with agent-first software. The hosts also spend a long, entertaining chunk of time on fitness trackers, watch mods, and the strange future of “watch maxing.”

Fitness Trackers, Watch Maxing, and Wearable Friction

Garmin workout logging frustrations

  • Alice shares a “did they even test this?” complaint about Garmin Connect’s exercise search.
  • The app is accurate enough for general tracking, but the search behavior is awkward and hard to use when logging specific strength exercises.
  • The discussion turns into a broader question: are these wearables meant to give detailed coaching, or just collect raw data?

Fitbit Air and custom strap ecosystems

  • The hosts talk about the trend of attaching traditional watches to the Fitbit Air strap.
  • Google/Fitbit has now published official specs, which could open the door for third-party adapters and accessories.
  • They debate:
    • whether the tracker should be worn on the underside of the wrist,
    • how optical sensors react to tendon movement and light leakage,
    • and whether screenless devices should even have notifications.

Casio modding with OliWatch

  • David talks about an aftermarket board that turns certain Casio watches into a “smartwatch.”
  • It adds Bluetooth, phone syncing, step tracking, alarms, and even simple extras like blackjack.
  • The appeal is less “full smartwatch” and more “fun, hackable gadget.”

Big takeaway on wearables

  • The group seems to agree that the best wearables are the ones that stay out of the way.
  • Notifications are useful to some, but only if they’re minimal, intentional, and don’t kill battery life or add unnecessary friction.

Google Search, AI Overviews, and Publisher Opt-Outs

  • Google is testing a new Search Console option that lets site owners opt out of AI Overviews, AI Mode, and related AI search features.
  • If a site opts out:
    • it won’t be used in those generative AI features,
    • but it should still rank normally in classic Google Search.
  • The hosts see this as Google responding to publisher pressure and regulatory scrutiny, especially in the UK.
  • They also raise the obvious open question: what happens to information already scraped and embedded in model training?

Why this matters

  • For affiliate and commerce sites, AI summaries may still drive higher-intent traffic.
  • For ad-supported publishers, AI answers could mean less traffic overall, which makes the opt-out more meaningful.
  • The episode frames this as Google finally giving publishers a lever, even if it’s not yet clear how much power that lever really has.

WWDC Expectations: Siri, Privacy, and Apple’s AI Story

  • The hosts expect WWDC to revolve heavily around a revamped Siri and deeper AI integration across Apple devices.
  • Likely Apple strategy:
    • make Siri more useful with on-device and private-cloud intelligence,
    • let it access more contextual data like calendar, messages, and app state,
    • and emphasize privacy hard.

Apple’s challenge

  • Apple is behind Google and others in assistant-style AI, but unlike Google, it doesn’t already sit on a giant cross-product data ecosystem.
  • That means Apple has to explain:
    • what data Siri can use,
    • where that data is processed,
    • and how it still fits Apple’s privacy-first brand.
  • The hosts expect Apple to use a lot of “privacy” messaging and likely a very polished visual demo to sell the idea.

Nvidia RTX Spark: A New Apple Silicon Competitor

  • Nvidia announced RTX Spark, a new ARM-based platform aimed at laptops/desktops and pitched as a major AI/creative computing machine.
  • It’s being positioned as a competitor to Apple Silicon, but a lot remains unknown.

Teased specs and positioning

  • 20 CPU cores
  • 6,144 GPU cores
  • up to 128GB unified memory
  • around 1 petaflop of AI compute
  • built with MediaTek
  • marketed heavily around AI agents and local AI workflows

The big unknowns

  • Real battery life
  • Real pricing
  • Real-world performance
  • Linux support
  • Whether the Windows experience will be polished enough for serious buyers

The hosts’ read

  • The ceiling could be huge if Nvidia can match Apple Silicon efficiency and leverage CUDA/software support.
  • The floor could be very expensive Windows hardware that looks great on paper but doesn’t feel compelling in practice.
  • The most likely buyers, at least initially, are power users, AI devs, and high-end creative workflows.

Microsoft: Agent OS Ambitions and Claude Cutoff

Project Solara

  • Microsoft showed off Project Solara, an “agent OS” concept built on Android.
  • The demo hardware included:
    • a desk device with Windows Hello-style login,
    • and a smart badge with a camera and assistant features.
  • The hosts think Microsoft is trying to define a platform for AI agents across many device types.

Claude Code access being removed

  • Microsoft is reportedly shutting down employee access to Claude Code by June 30.
  • The likely reasons:
    • cost,
    • and the fact that Microsoft is pushing its own Copilot/agent stack.
  • The segment highlights how quickly AI coding tools are becoming expensive enough to influence internal policy.

Anthropic and the AI Bubble / SpaceX-XAI Angle

  • Anthropic is reportedly filing confidentially for an IPO.
  • The episode also dives into a more complicated financial story around Elon Musk’s companies:
    • X, xAI, and SpaceX being tied together,
    • and the risk of index funds being forced into buying a highly speculative asset.
  • The hosts frame this as a sign that the AI boom is getting expensive and may soon face a reality check.

Trivia Segment

  • The episode ends with Google+ trivia.
  • One question asks how many social services Google launched before Google Plus.
  • Another asks which Google+ feature eventually became a standalone product: Hangouts.

Main Takeaways

  • Apple’s WWDC success hinges on whether Siri finally becomes genuinely useful.
  • Nvidia’s RTX Spark could be the first serious Apple Silicon-style challenger for AI-heavy users.
  • Google is giving publishers a small amount of control over AI search features, but the long-term traffic impact is still unclear.
  • Microsoft is pushing an agent-first future, but cost and ecosystem control are already shaping product decisions.
  • Wearables are evolving toward more modular, customizable, and minimal designs — but people still disagree on how “smart” they should be.