“Apple’s annual software developers conference, which kicks off Monday, will be its next big opportunity to show the world what’s coming next,” Brandon Bailey reports for The Associated Press. “Artificial intelligence, and Apple’s wisecracking digital assistant Siri, could play a big role.”
“On Monday, Apple is expected to demonstrate an upgrade to Siri’s smart,” Bailey reports. “‘Google Now has kind of eaten their lunch,’ said Chris Monberg, co-founder of Boomtrain, a startup that makes artificial intelligence software used by online retailers. Monberg argues that Google’s proactive digital assistant provides more useful reminders, recommendations and tips on local weather or traffic, largely because it reads his email and other data from his Android phone and crunches it with sophisticated algorithms on Google’s powerful servers.”
MacDailyNews Take: Privacy, and therefore ultimately security, be damned.
“In some respects, Siri remains plenty competitive, at least so long as you stick with Apple’s other services,” Bailey reports. “If an iPhone owner uses Google’s Gmail, for instance, Apple’s software may not scan those emails for useful information. But Jan Dawson, a tech analyst at Jackdaw Research, notes that Siri can volunteer helpful reminders from the Apple calendar, offer suggestions based on a user’s location, or search for images stored in Apple’s photo app.”
“Apple, however, has been largely unwilling to pry too deeply into your personal information. And some experts say that puts it at a disadvantage compared to Google,” Bailey reports. “Last fall, however, Apple acquired a startup that makes AI software specifically for mobile devices, and another that helps computers carry on extensive voice conversations. And tech news sites have reported Apple may loosen its restrictions on Siri’s ability to work directly with other companies’ software.”
Read more in the full article here.
MacDailyNews Take: Apple has a better, more sophisticated way than the others who run roughshod over users’ privacy rights, granted or not.
The paranoia about privacy is well justified. Having said that, if you want your digital assistant to be more valuable to you, it really is going to have to learn about you. There’s just no getting around that. Siri should have a set of toggle switches where you can manage your privacy settings. And maybe what it learns can be stored locally on your iPhone.
I’m pretty sure that it will have that. Also, by doing everything on device, Siri will learn about you, and you alone, without the intrusion of of all that other data. I think Apple’s approach is correct. That way when we purchase and apple product we don’t have to worry about them selling our information to “improve@ their advertising model. Since Apple doesn’t care about monitoring us, and only gives a shit about selling us hardware and the connected services that pair with that hardware, I’m very comfortable with entrusting information to them. I’m not apple’s product.
Apple’s next big software improvements… copying everyone else. Cupertino start your photocopiers. Tim “the steward” Cook’s Apple is a shadow of the greatness of Steve Jobs’ Apple. Pathetic.