Read the Apple document explaining how new listening features still protect your privacy
Apple has released technical documentation detailing how its new Siri Audio Intelligence features maintain user privacy through hardware-level isolation. By utilizing the Secure Exclave within the S11 chip, the company ensures that raw audio is processed locally and never stored or accessed by the operating system.
Why it matters
As AI features become more integrated into consumer devices, this transparency helps address growing public concerns regarding ambient listening and data surveillance.
At Wednesday’s iPhone Duo launch event, Apple announced a handful of new Siri AI Audio Intelligence features, including Siri Recap, Live Rewind, Sound Recognition, and Music Recognition. Alongside its announcement, Apple released a document laying out how it plans to balance AI “ambient listening” and users’ privacy. It says the raw audio from the new features “is handled within dedicated hardware, is not saved as a file, and is not accessible to the operating system, apps, or Apple.”
Apple explains that Audio Intelligence relies on the Secure Exclave in the S11 chip that powers the new Apple Watch Series 12 and Apple Watch Ultra 4:
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