Apple Intelligence: AI with solid privacy protection coming to your devices

Apple is introducing “Apple Intelligence”, a new artificial intelligence system to its devices that aims to revolutionize the user experience. The system uses Private Cloud Compute technology, ensuring the security of user data while using artificial intelligence. Key features include integration of ChatGPT, system-wide writing tools, and the Image Playground API. Apple Intelligence also introduces Genmoji, a new way to express yourself, and gives Siri enhanced performance capabilities.

Apple, the tech giant known for its innovative technology and user-centric designs, has announced a significant leap forward in artificial intelligence (AI) technology. The company intends to bring “Apple Intelligence” to its devices, aiming to revolutionize the user experience on iPhone, iPad and Mac systems. This new AI system will integrate powerful generative models into the core of these devices, marking a significant shift in the way people use devices to communicate, work and express themselves. The new system will be part of iOS 18, iPadOS 18 and macOS Sequoia, which are scheduled to be released in beta this fall.

Apple Intelligence is designed to understand personal context and deliver information that is both helpful and relevant. This represents a significant shift in how people use devices to communicate, work, and express themselves. Generative models are enhanced with personal context to deliver information that is both incredibly useful and relevant.

Apple has always been a strong advocate for privacy, and with Apple Intelligence, the company claims to be setting a new standard for privacy in AI. The system uses Private Cloud Compute, which allows it to be flexible and scale its computing power between on-device processing and larger server-based models that run on dedicated Apple Silicon servers. This ensures that user data remains secure while still benefiting from the power of AI.

One of the key features of Apple Intelligence is ChatGPT integration, which will also appear on iOS 18, iPadOS 18 and macOS Sequoia later this year, using GPT-4o. This integration brings advanced AI capabilities to Apple devices, improving the user experience by enabling more sophisticated natural language processing. Siri and other AI features will be able to understand and respond to complex requests, provide more nuanced and contextually appropriate assistance, and potentially generate text or content with greater creativity and accuracy.

Apple Intelligence is also introducing system-wide writing tools built into iOS 18, iPadOS 18, and macOS Sequoia. These tools will help users rewrite, proofread, and summarize text across apps, improving the quality and efficiency of written communication. The “TextView” delegation API lets users customize the behavior of the app when the writing tool is active, such as pausing syncing to avoid conflicts when Apple Intelligence processes text.

The Image Playground API is another innovative Apple Intelligence feature. It lets users quickly create stunning images using context from within an app. Because images are created entirely on the device, developers don’t need to develop or share their own models so users can enjoy creating new images in their app.

Apple Intelligence also introduces Genmoji, a new way for users to express themselves. Genmoji are represented as embedded images, unlike traditional emoji, which are represented as text. Users can create an original Genmoji by simply entering a description, and their Genmoji will appear along with additional options. Users can even create Genmoji of friends and family based on their photos.

In addition to these features, Apple Intelligence provides Siri with improved action capabilities. Developers can use predefined and pre-trained App Intents across multiple domains to not only give Siri the ability to take actions in your app, but also make your app’s actions more discoverable in places like Spotlight, the Shortcuts app, Control Center, and more.

Apple Intelligence is also making improvements to the Notes and Phone apps. Users can now record, transcribe and summarize audio. When a recording begins during a call, participants will be automatically notified, and when the call ends, Apple Intelligence will generate a summary to help them recall key points. This feature is expected to be particularly useful in professional applications where recalling key points from meetings or phone calls is crucial.

The introduction of Apple Intelligence marks a milestone in the evolution of AI technology. It follows the trend of technology companies integrating artificial intelligence into their devices and services to improve user experiences. For example, Meta trains AI models using public posts as a dataset in the US and other locations where Meta AI has been engaged. Google has open-sourced its Android mobile operating system to better compete with Apple’s iPhone, taking over a large share of the smartphone segment.

However, the integration of AI into devices and services has raised concerns about data privacy and security. Europe and the UK have strict privacy rules that put consumer privacy first. EU regulations known as GDPR and the Digital Markets Act (DMA) make it difficult for large digital corporations like Meta to break them. Apple’s approach to AI emphasizes privacy by design, which is consistent with their established privacy-focused policy.

In short, Apple Intelligence represents a significant step forward in integrating AI into everyday devices. By combining advanced AI capabilities with a strong focus on privacy, Apple will revolutionize the way people use their devices. As we eagerly await the launch of iOS 18, iPadOS 18, and macOS Sequoia this fall, it’s clear that the future of AI is here, and it’s more personal, intelligent, and private than ever before.