Tim Cook: You can have AI *and* privacy
As part of his Apple Q4 2016 conference call opening remarks, CEO Tim Cook dove into how Apple is using artificial intelligence, machine learning, and computer vision:
The part on how machine learning is helping improve battery life has previous led me to speculate on what Apple could be doing to burn AI into their already industry-leading silicon.
An important differentiator, either a positive for personal privacy or a negative for performance, depending on how you look at it, remains Apple's stance on protecting customer data. While competitors now use hardware tied to services, like Amazon's Echo and Google's Pixel and Home, as candy coatings around massive data harvesting operations, Apple has steadfastly refused to do likewise. It's not how the company makes money, and beyond that — it's not even something they believe is needed.
Cook, again:
It echoes senior vice president of software engineering, Craig Federighi's said on John Gruber's The Talk Show last fall:
In other words, competing services don't need our data to work, but the companies that make them want our data, and build AI to get it.
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Rene Ritchie is one of the most respected Apple analysts in the business, reaching a combined audience of over 40 million readers a month. His YouTube channel, Vector, has over 90 thousand subscribers and 14 million views and his podcasts, including Debug, have been downloaded over 20 million times. He also regularly co-hosts MacBreak Weekly for the TWiT network and co-hosted CES Live! and Talk Mobile. Based in Montreal, Rene is a former director of product marketing, web developer, and graphic designer. He's authored several books and appeared on numerous television and radio segments to discuss Apple and the technology industry. When not working, he likes to cook, grapple, and spend time with his friends and family.