Apple Watch AI Features for Conversations Enter Beta Testing
· Technology · TechCrunch
Apple has begun beta testing its AI-powered Audio Intelligence technology for the Apple Watch, initially for developers via the iOS 27.3 update. These four opt-in AI features, announced at the company's September hardware event, allow Apple Watch Series 12 users to detect important sounds, identify songs, catch up on conversations, and take notes. The sound recognition feature aids deaf and hard-of-hearing users by identifying sounds like sirens and alarms, while song recognition uses Shazam to identify music. More controversially, the features include Live Rewind, which lets users double-press the digital crown to see the last 15 seconds of spoken conversation as a text snippet, and Siri Recaps, which takes high-level notes of conversations. Apple states that an audible chime and animation will signal when a recording is made, and snippets are deleted after 30 seconds if not saved to the Siri app.
Why it matters
These new AI features could significantly enhance accessibility for users with hearing impairments and improve productivity by allowing quick recall of spoken information. However, the conversational listening capabilities raise privacy concerns, similar to other AI wearables, potentially impacting user adoption and public perception.
Read the original report — TechCrunch
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