Apple is set to unveil a new groundbreaking AI system called Apple Intelligence for the iPhone, iPad, and Mac at WWDC 2024, according to Bloomberg. It appears, the “system” will be a culmination of all the AI efforts Apple is prepping for users in the race to catch up with Google and Microsoft.
Apple Intelligence will introduce “beta” AI features across Apple’s platforms and apps, including access to a ChatGPT-like chatbot powered by OpenAI, a partnership that’s going to be central to some—if not all—of Apple’s incoming breakthroughs.
Apple isn’t looking to wow people with flashy features, like some other brands, rather its AI approach is said to be more practical and grounded at least in the beginning. And so, Apple Intelligence will emphasise more on features like AI-powered summarisations, reply suggestions, and to top it all up, enhancing the powers of Siri.
This AI overhaul aims to provide Siri with greater control over apps and cater to applications with broad appeal. The term “broad” is essential because not having AI Siri work with popular apps isn’t the kind of thing you’d expect from Apple at least at this juncture. Siri, it seems, is set to get its long overdue care and attention, that it has long deserved but for some reason hasn’t really translated into real-time use, like say Google Assistant/Gemini or Alexa.
But moving on, Apple will leverage both its own technology and OpenAI’s tools to drive the new slate of AI features that are coming to its devices. The report mentions that Cupertino plans to use an algorithm to decide whether a task can be processed on the device locally or needs to be sent to a cloud server. Apple is expected to use its home-grown M2 chip in data centres with a Secure Enclave to ensure that data processed remotely is as secure as it would be on-device.
Moreover, to address security concerns, Apple will avoid building profiles based on user data and will generate reports to show that user information isn’t being sold or read. This is unlike Microsoft’s recent announcement of Copilot Plus PCs with AI, which includes locally-stored screenshots for the Recall feature, by default. Though after it came under the scanner for being a serious security risk, Microsoft has backtracked and announced that it would let users opt out from using Recall.
According to Bloomberg, users will need devices powered by an M1 chip or later to access Apple Intelligence on iPad or Mac. For mobile devices, the requirements might be limited to the iPhone 15 Pro and the upcoming iPhone 16 series. Importantly, Apple will not mandate the use of the new AI features, making them opt-in for users.
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