Apple's 'Ask' project may be far more than just an AI-assisted support tool
A report that revealed Apple's "Ask" tool may not have been the whole story, with a leaker exclusively telling AppleInsider that the project goes beyond a simple language learning model or generative AI tool.
Apple is working on AI tools
Sparse details about a new tool called "Ask" being tested by Apple employees surfaced on February 23. Since then, we've obtained more information about the project.
On late Sunday, a leaker reached out to AppleInsider with a bit more information on the Apple "Ask" tool. The leaker claims that "Ask" is "not a LLM or other generative AI like some think."
The leaker leans into this, saying that because the support knowledge database, and the front-end to that database for support members, are constantly evolving, it needs to be far more than that. They go on to say that it is intended to be an advanced natural language search engine, to assist support users.
Despite spending all of Monday and a good part of the overnight into Tuesday trying to breach Apple's wall of secrecy around the project, we obviously can't absolutely confirm the provenance of the information, and we were not provided a means to ask amplifying questions.
Efforts to get more information continue, because the technology at its core seems like an obvious addition to a future series of OS releases. Should we get more information on Tuesday or Wednesday, we will update this article accordingly.
What is Apple Ask?
Apple launched a pilot program that provides select AppleCare support advisers an AI tool called "Ask." It is a tool that automatically generates responses to technical questions based on information from Apple's internal database.
Unlike a simple search tool, which returns the same results every time based on relevance, the "Ask" program generates an answer based on specifics mentioned in the query, like device type or operating system. Advisors can mark these answers as "helpful" or "unhelpful."
Given that as of late, chatbots have started feeding from other chatbots, they tend to make things up with high confidence. This is called "hallucination" -- and is obviously bad for Apple employees providing help for consumers.
The "Ask" tool attempts to avoid this behavior by being trained only on its internal database with additional checks that ensure responses are "factual, traceable, and useful."
There's a good chance this leaked "Ask" tool either is or is based on the previously leaked "Ajax." It is an internal tool that some allegedly referred to as "AppleGPT."
Tim Cook directly said that Apple was working on AI tools for likely release at some point in 2024. Even though nothing has been announced, the company is likely working on and testing many tools that rely on generative models similar to how ChatGPT operates.
Apple's push into AI and what it might mean for iOS 18 has yet to be made clear. WWDC in June will likely have details.
Rumor Score: Possible
Read on AppleInsider
Comments
These are not LLMs nor comparable to what ChatGPT has already brought out.
As LLM usage is quite limited in terms of their capacities and storages running on the phone, this function is just limited to AppleCare (all necessary data for AppleCare can be handled with their chip capacitiy).
At the end, something interesting and exciting (if!) only for AppleCare customers.
The first.
”ok”
Or notice that I usually as for 15 and decide based on past history and typical times and when I usually ask.
Even the most mundane things like 'how much will it cost to change the battery on this phone?' and then get instant, up-to-date pricing, turnaround times in-store or shipping options etc for your nearest geographical options.
I've pondered whether I can get a text only web browser for such things. Too bad Lynx died or has not been brought onto the modern age. It would be blocked all over the place, and probably prove useless.
Apple and Google, Samsung, Meta, Microsoft are on two different paths when it comes to data usage one is implemented on the device, the other is implemented somewhere in the cloud neither is wrong they’re just different, but which one do you think will sell the one that works right away on the device or the one that you have to stand there and look like an idiot waiting for it (the data) to come back to your phone/computer/tablet?
And it is no surprise everything on the Google Pixel 8 Pro, or the Samsung S24 needs to phone home to elicit a response because of the deep mind? By phoning home the tensor (me too) processor which happens to be weaker than the 11 Pro iPhone with a bad modem to boot is not progress, the modem which is probably equivalent to what Apple can build today in house but wisely choose not to release.
Another thing, that’s interesting is that every time Tim Cook is asked the question, Tim briefly explains just a little of what Apple is doing and because doesn’t line up with what everyone else is doing the media and the Wall Street analyst‘s eyes glaze over every time.
Because Apple is essentially the only large vertical computer left from the bygone era, whatever Apples solution is it won’t be a Microsoft, Meta or Google solution, and that is reflected in the products that they make currently today that are used by the general public, that question and answer session is probably the media fishing to see if Apple is going to follow along with everyone else’s solutions in AI, in short, they want to be reassured that Apple is a part of the new AI hype, with the rest, and are not venturing outside somewhere else be it in Game Engines, GPU’s, Servers, or Modems. Although they are already executing on two of those items now as far as we know officially.
The tech companies that are currently announcing/hinting at AI projects, are announcing software/server based projects far removed from the public (in short almost impossible to pin down their value ie…Gemini).
Most are not executing anything concrete they are just taking advantage of the so-called AI wave to ride their stock up with a little PR hot air, long term execution is the only thing that counts.
AI on the edge is Apples path and it is no surprise Google, Meta, Samsung and Microsoft want to phone home to Mama that’s the only path a non vertical computer companies can take.
Google and Samsung of course phone home to do a lot of the ML processing, while Apple strives to do it on device.
it does seem however that the current AI focus seems to have caught Tim Apple and his fellow execs a tad off guard.
iOS 18: AI Server Industry Aiming to Win Business From Apple | MacRumors Forums
Looks like AI on the edge is not enough to compete with AI leaders as MS / OpenAI, Google and Meta.