May 30, 2024 14:00:00

Apple plans to process AI app data in a black box cloud, making the data inaccessible even to Apple employees

In recent years, Apple has been actively

investing in AI , and it is expected that iOS 18, which will be announced at the annual developer event WWDC24 , scheduled to be held on June 11, 2024, will be equipped with various AI functions. Meanwhile, overseas media The Information reported that Apple plans to process AI app data in a virtual black box cloud.

Apple's Plan to Protect Privacy With AI: Putting Cloud Data in a Black Box — The Information
https://www.theinformation.com/articles/apples-plan-to-protect-privacy-with-ai-putting-cloud-data-in-a-black-box

Apple plots creating AI 'black box' for iCloud
https://appleinsider.com/articles/24/05/29/apples-ai-plans-involves-black-box-for-cloud-data

Apple's artificial intelligence servers will use 'confidential computing' techniques to process user data while maintaining privacy - 9to5Mac
https://9to5mac.com/2024/05/29/apple-ai-confidential-computing-ios-18/

Apple is set to announce a variety of AI features at WWDC24. It has been reported that iOS 18 will revamp its AI assistant Siri, adding features such as real-time transcription and summarization using AI, AI photo retouching, and the ability to generate emojis based on messages sent.

Apple will revamp Siri in iOS 18 to add real-time AI transcription and summarization features - GIGAZINE

When an app's AI functions run on a device, such as an iPhone or Mac, the less compute-intensive AI functions are processed on the device, while functions that require more processing power are processed in the cloud.

While this method is effective at speeding up the execution of AI tasks, processing data in the cloud raises privacy concerns, as device data is uploaded to the cloud, leaving it vulnerable to misuse and leakage by hackers.

According to The Information, Apple is adopting the concept of ' Apple Chips in Data Centers (ACDC) ' to run AI tasks in the cloud while maintaining strict privacy standards.

At the heart of ACDC is the Secure Enclave , a security coprocessor found in devices such as the iPhone. The Secure Enclave protects passwords and encryption keys, preventing access to sensitive data if a hacker breaches the hardware.

ACDC is reported to be upscaling this Secure Enclave to keep data in the cloud private at all times. Although there is still a potential weakness if a hacker gains physical access to the cloud server, this approach is much more secure than the AI approach adopted by Apple's competitors. With ACDC, even Apple employees cannot access cloud data, making it difficult to hand over data even if requested by government or law enforcement agencies.

According to The Information, the ACDC project appears to have been in the works since before the recent AI boom, and has been in the works for at least three years. Therefore, ACDC's use to enable some AI features in iOS 18 is only a short-term purpose, and it is possible that ACDC has other long-term goals.

'The ACDC initiative could be beneficial for Apple in terms of future device designs. By offloading AI functions to the cloud, Apple could reduce the hardware requirements of future products, making wearables and other devices lighter,' Apple Insider said.