Apple’s siri-ie problem: why the company is struggling with AI

Apple has a problem. While the tech industry is in the AI ​​train at full speed, the iPhone maker seems to miss the station. Why does Apple have so much trouble with AI?

Apple and AI: a Siri-EU problem

It seemed like Apple was on top of it: a more personal Siri would fundamentally change the use of an iPhone. For example, you could ask the assistant when your mother’s plane lands, after which he independently grants your messages and current flight information and even arranges an Uber.

Apple believed in such a way that a complete presentation was dedicated to the new Siri and an advertisement with Bella Ramsey in the lead role was already broadcast. Now it appears that the company has overestimated itself enormously, because the AI ​​update for Siri is being postponed for the time being and the advertising has been withdrawn.

The company says in a statement that it takes a little longer than expected to finish Siri 2.0. Although Apple does not give any further details, Bloomberg previously reported that Apple encounters piles of technical problems and bugs.

We are used to the fact that Apple keeps a close eye on developments in the industry, only to come up with its own answer later that has been considered so good that the iPhone maker has come up with it himself. The company could not wait for that with AI. Now it appears that generative artificial intelligence and Apple are not a good match at all.

It just works (usually)

Apple had already solved the well -known privacy problem of generative artificial intelligence. The focus would be on local AI. What you say stays on your device and is therefore not uploaded to servers to continue training AI, such as with Chatgpt by default.

Yet privacy is not the only spearhead of Apple. The idea of ​​’It Just Works’ has always been important for the company. A product is only put on the market if it always works as it should work.

The reality of generative artificial intelligence is that it does not always work perfectly. This technology is based on prediction and that goes well around 80 percent of the time. For example, AI will hallucinate information other times. Of course, Apple does not want Siri to panic and only come up with when your mother’s plane lands.

AI is unsafe

But perhaps the main reason why generative AI and Apple are not a good match is the insecurity. Apple is proud that his devices are known as the safest on the market. With an iPhone or Mac you have less risk of viruses, malware and other misery compared to a Android device or a Windows PC. However, if Apple integrates generative AI deep into its devices, that yields all kinds of new risks.

Be a concrete example Prompt Injection Attacks A real danger. An attacker can secretly hide a prompt in an e-mail, which gives AI the assignment to send your latest e-mails or passwords in a message. You can already imagine the riots.

Junk

Because Apple cannot wait, there are now some basic functions under the name Apple Intelligence that we could finally use in the Netherlands from April (but then you have to put the iPhone in English). Whether we should be happy with that is just the question, because the reactions from other countries are not good. For example, Apple Intelligence can summarize your notifications, but it regularly makes it a game.

So it will be quite exciting for Apple in the coming period. If the company does not come along with the rest, there is a chance that an iPhone will soon feel outdated. However, if the renewed Siri will soon be a unique, personal and above all safe experience Just Works? Then we can just pretend to have devised the technology again.

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