Apple on Tuesday kicked off an event featuring the unveiling of a new lineup of iPhones headlined by a new thinner smartphone as the tech giant explores new design features.

Apple's new thinner smartphone offering is known as the iPhone Air and is expected to be in the middle of the company's iPhone lineup between less expensive iPhone 17 models and more expensive iPhone 17 Pro models.

The company said the iPhone Air is its thinnest iPhone ever and it's only 5.6mm with a 6.5 inch display. It's protected by an improved ceramic shield on both the front and back, with a titanium frame, which Apple said will make it the most durable iPhone ever. It also features a new plateau, which was reworked to accommodate the thinner design.

Apple also included a new CPU that's faster and more efficient than in previous models, along with a second-generation GPU designed to facilitate MacBook-level AI computing through the use of neural accelerators in each GPU core, the company said.

Apple CEO Tim Cook said that the inception of iPhone Air allowed the company to push the performance of its iPhone 17 Pro models even further, saying that it's "by far the most advanced iPhone ever."

The reveal comes as analysts told Reuters the new iPhone Air could serve as a stepping stone toward a foldable device, like those made by Samsung. Google also unveiled a new folding smartphone model last month.

Apple's new iPhones won't feature an overhaul to Siri, Apple's virtual assistant, which the company has delayed until next year's releases.

The company recently announced a partnership with OpenAI, the maker of ChatGPT, to power some of the artificial intelligence (AI) features in its operating systems, and analysts are monitoring whether the company will add more AI partnerships before the updated version of Siri is unveiled.

This is a developing story. Please check back for updates.

Reuters contributed to this report.