Excited about Apple Intelligence? The company’s director, Craig Federighi, certainly is, and has explained why it will be an advanced AI for security and privacy
Reactions to Apple Intelligence, which Apple unveiled at WWDC 2024, have ranged from curious to positive to disappointing, but whatever your thoughts on the technology itself, a major talking point is Apple’s emphasis on privacy, unlike some companies that generative AI products for some time.
Apple puts privacy at the heart of its AI offering and was keen to share how Apple Intelligence β which will be integrated into iOS 18, iPadOS 18 and macOS Sequoia β would differentiate itself from its competitors by taking a new approach to handling user information.
Craig Federighi, Apple’s Senior Vice President of Software Engineering and lead presenter of the WWDC keynote, shared more details about Apple Intelligence and the company’s privacy-first approach.
In conversation with Fast CompanyFederighi explained more about Apple’s overall AI ambitions, confirming that Apple agrees with other major tech companies that generative AI is the next big thing – as big as the Internet or microprocessors were when they first emerged – and that we We are at the beginning of the evolution of generative AI.
Apple’s commitment to AI privacy
Federighi told Fast Company that Apple aims to βset a completely different barβ than other AI services and products when it comes to privacy. He emphasized the message in the WWDC keynote that the personal aspect of Apple Intelligence is fundamental to it and that users’ information will be under their control. He also reiterated that Apple would not have access to your information even while its data centers are processing it.
The practical steps Apple is taking to achieve this start with the range of Apple M-series processors, which Apple claims can run and process many AI tasks on the device, meaning your data doesn’t have to leave your system. For times when local processing power is insufficient, the task at hand is sent to dedicated custom Apple servers using Private Cloud Compute (PCC), offering much more assistance to requests that need it – while being more secure than other cloud products in the same vein, Apple claims.
This means that your device only sends the minimum information necessary to process your requests, and Apple claims that its servers are designed in such a way that it is impossible for them to store your data. This is apparently because after your request is processed and sent back to your device, the information is “cryptographically destroyed” and never seen by anyone at Apple.
Apple has published a more in-depth security research blog post that delves deeper into PCC, which, as noted at WWDC 2024, is a system available to independent security researchers, who have access to Apple Intelligence servers to help improve Apple’s privacy and security. Verify. claims surrounding PCC.
Apple wants AI to feel like a natural, almost unnoticeable part of its software, and the tech giant clearly wants to earn the trust of those who use its products and differentiate its view of AI compared to that of its competitors.
More about ChatGPT and Apple Intelligence in China
Federighi also talks about Apple’s new partnership with OpenAI and the integration of ChatGPT into its operating systems. This is done to give users access to advanced, industry-standard models, while reassuring users that ChatGPT is not the driving force behind Apple Intelligence; the latter is powered solely by Apple’s own Major Language Models (LLMs), which are completely different across Apple’s platforms, but you can enable ChatGPT for more complex requests.
ChatGPT is only invoked at the user’s request and with the user’s permission. Before any requests are sent to ChatGPT, you must confirm that you want to do this explicitly. Apple partnered with OpenAI to bring this option to users because, according to Federighi, GPT-4o is βcurrently the best LLM for knowledge around the world.β
Apple is also considering expanding this concept to other LLM makers in the future, so you may be able to choose from a variety of LLMs for your more demanding requests.
Federighi also discussed his plans for Apple Intelligence in China β the company’s second-largest market β and how the company is working to comply with regulations in the country to deliver the most advanced capabilities to all customers. This process is ongoing, but could take a while, as Federighi noted: βWe don’t have a timing right now to announce this, but it’s certainly something we want to do.β
We’ll have to see how Apple Intelligence performs in practice and whether Apple’s privacy-first approach pays off. Apple has a strong track record of designing products and services that integrate so seamlessly that they become part of our everyday lives, and it could well be on track to continue building that reputation with Apple Intelligence .