Apple's Culture of Secrecy Slowing its Artificial Intelligence Development

[MacRumors]

Apple's strict adherence to an environment of secrecy and privacy in regards to its software and hardware development has been suggested as a major blow to the company's potential for growth in the field of artificial intelligence. In a new article by Bloomberg, Apple was noted as a non-attendee at the Neural Information Processing Systems conference, an annual confluence of companies including Google and Microsoft where researches get together to discuss the progress and development of AI technologies.

In years past, Apple has attended the conference, but its emissaries were known to keep "a low profile" during the proceedings. In the midst of a mass sharing and celebration of discoveries and findings in the world of AI, many remain unsure of the Cupertino company's continued success in such departments if it remains attached to such strict secrecy rules. "They're completely out of the loop," said Richard Zemel, a professor in the computer science department at the University of Toronto.

The biggest threat posed to Apple due to this level of secrecy, according to Trevor Darrell, managing director of a machine-learning research center at the University of California at Berkeley, is the barrier to entry it creates for graduate students fresh out of college. The stagnant environment and closed-off atmosphere inhibits the company's employees from interacting with the rest of the scientific community, an issue that most potential hires may not be entirely comfortable with.

"There's no way they can just observe and not be part of the community and take advantage of what is going on," says Yoshua Bengio, a professor of computer science at the University of Montreal. "I believe if they don't change their attitude, they will stay behind."

"The really strong people don't want to go into a closed environment where it's all secret," Bengio says. "The differentiating factors are, 'Who are you going to be working with?' 'Am I going to stay a part of the scientific community?' 'How much freedom will I have?'"

Earlier in the month, Apple acquired two artificial intelligence-related start-ups: VocalIQ and Perceptio. VocalIQ's natural language API hints at a more naturalistic version of Siri in the future, and even possible integration into the rumored Apple car project. Perceptio suggests the possibility of a more expansive and robust AI system for Apple, without the compromise of the company's in-depth privacy policies that pull Siri back from services like Google Now and Microsoft's Cortana.

All the same, Bloomberg's story suggests that despite Apple's enthusiasm to innovate in the artificial intelligence sector, the company could continue to lag behind in certain departments -- Apple Maps, for example -- due to its stances on secrecy and privacy.

Article Link: Apple's Culture of Secrecy Slowing its Artificial Intelligence Development

 

[Kaibelf]

Apple learned enough by sharing with Google back when Eric Schmidt was on the board. I'm glad they choose privacy as a focus instead of a free-for-all.

 

[spiderman0616]

Apple already got majorly burned by Google from having Eric Schmidt on their board. So Bloomberg is just going to have to forgive them for wanting to keep most things under wraps and rely on the brilliant AI and voice recognition companies they've been acquiring to get things up to snuff.

 

[Flow39]

Well, I don't think I'd be giving advice to the most wealthy company in history, but that's just me.

 

[maflynn]

Apple learned enough by sharing with Google back when Eric Schmidt was on the board. I'm glad they choose privacy as a focus instead of a free-for-all.

Given the listening ears of its competitors, I agree. While progress may not be that fast, keeping things close to the vest is a good thing

 

[wigby]

There's as much blind speculation going on in this article as there is blind speculation when it comes to their supply chain or analyst predictions. If you're not in the Apple circle, you just don't know how much they know about this stuff. And you certainly don't have to attend a few conferences to know anything more. Sounds like these experts are just curious and a little miffed that Apple doesn't care enough about them to share and show up.

Apple could very well be ahead of everyone else in AI but we all just don't know.

 

[gigapocket1]

A company with standards..

But they could do what they have been doing. Just buy the technologies and companies with the talent that it needs.. No problem there.
And, this article assumes that they are behind in AI.. They could theoretically be long passed what's being talked about at this conference.. Why would they share their secrets?

 

[keysofanxiety]

I remind myself that Apple are likely working towards a great AI with a strong backbone of privacy. No data sharing. A very, very clever thing that will blow everybody's minds when released. I read the articles about the people they've hired, and the rumours of what they've been working on. I get really, really excited to see what'll happen.

Then the VP of Apple's Internet Software and Services, Eddy Cue, swaggers on stage - and my heart sinks. I genuinely don't think Apple will be able to pull this off with him at the helm.

 

[Peepo]

More like other way around - others are more concerned that they can't steal any ideas from Apple.

 

[Peepo]

Then the VP of Apple's Internet Software and Services, Eddy Cue, swaggers on stage - and my heart sinks. I genuinely don't think Apple will be able to pull this off with him at the helm.

Also he comes out with Adele and announce you get a free CD of her latest album with every purchase of Apple TV.

 

[iSee]

Yeah, right.

 

[2807]

If you can claw through the nonsense in the 3rd paragraph...

Connect the dots and see that they say:
...The BIGGEST threat to Apple is that.... "most" ... new graduates from college may not want to work for them.

Uh, seriously?

Who writes this rot?

I highly doubt that new graduates in this crowded field are staying away from Apple in any capacity.
I suspect that Apple is the goal for nearly everyone of them.

Apple... or Starbucks.

 

[keysofanxiety]

Also he comes out with Adele and announce you get a free CD of her latest album with every purchase of Apple TV.

Let's hope he doesn't dance to that one.

 

[mrgraff]

I guess I'm the only person old enough to remember how much more useful Siri was before Apple purchased it.

 

[djcerla]

Speculative at best.

With $206B in the bank Apple could hire whoever they want, or buy their companies outright. And that's precisely what is happening right now.

 

[thed0g]

Maybe I'm in a minority but ... I really don't care about any AI in an OS, until security, stability and performance is at it always was.

 

[kmj2318]

None of this AI stuff is compelling in practice for me.

 

[ArtOfWarfare]

Well, I don't think I'd be giving advice to the most wealthy company in history, but that's just me.

I'm not sure I'd say that. You have to look at whether they're on track to remain the most wealthy company or not. Currently, it looks like they are.

 

[kingpushup]

Article headline requires a question mark. Where's your factual data? Report speculation properly please.

 

[bobringer]

They conflate "secrecy" with "user privacy" then act like their strawman means they have something to say.

 

[Jsameds]

Good. As long as the focus is on privacy and locking down person information I don't mind waiting.

 

[morcutt11]

I asked Siri "How long does milk last?". Siri responded "128 minutes". Intrigued, I looked at the screen to see that Siri was referencing a movie called "milk", which I've never even heard of.

I'm sure that Apple knowingly pays a price for its secrecy, but it is a two-way street: their products aren't as good as they could be, but Samsung isn't rushing the stolen solution to market ahead of Apple. Apple does participate in some open standards groups, but I think that they keep things closed-off that they perceive to be true competitive advantage potentials.

 

[Gasu E.]

Apple already got majorly burned by Google from having Eric Schmidt on their board. So Bloomberg is just going to have to forgive them for wanting to keep most things under wraps and rely on the brilliant AI and voice recognition companies they've been acquiring to get things up to snuff.

One thing has nothing to do with the other. Eric Schmidt was privy to Apple's high level product strategy. Most company's manage NOT to put potential competitors on their Board, and Apple has learned that lesson. That's different from sharing research results on the bleeding edge of technology. Most companies figure out how to balance that vs. management of company secrets.

 

[2457282]

By not sharing the article assumes that Apple will fall behind. But the reverse could be true as well -- by not sharing they can produce something revolutionary that no one was talking or even thinking about. For Apple it is a risk worth taking. Staying on Par will not cut it. Apple needs to leapfrog the competition as it has done in the past.

 

[Kaibelf]

I asked Siri "How long does milk last?". Siri responded "128 minutes". Intrigued, I looked at the screen to see that Siri was referencing a movie called "milk", which I've never even heard of.

You need to get out more. It was a very high profile film and won quite a number of awards, and brought big recognition for Sean Penn and basically launched James Franco on a new career path as a more serious actor.