Well, Apple just bring back the xserve (updated version of course) and MacOS Server - not just for your enterprise use, but also for our enterprices... Honestly, I don't understand why such an important part of the ecosystem was discontinued in the first place...
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Report: Apple Asks Google to Run Siri on Its Servers
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Apple completely lacks of vision with IA and Cloud. They are going straight forward in the Evil Room of Google
Very worrying
Very worrying
Black_Mage
Contributor
As long as Apple still protects our privacy, I don’t care who owns the servers. Also, I very rarely use Siri except for simple things that can be done on device.
robertosh
macrumors 65816
I think Apple should give up with AI. Nobody cares about Apple AI. Just take the opportunity and say publicity that AI s***s and that they will remove all AI from base OS. It simply does not work, and this is why they are struggling to getting it done. I think it will be a good move and will help in exploding this non-sense bubble.
Investors won't be happy though.
Investors won't be happy though.
One thing abundantly clear from all the posts in this thread is people have no idea how cloud services work or how a company could use someone else’s servers while still maintaining privacy.
These issues have already been solved.
These issues have already been solved.
Yep. Shame Apple's potential hookup with Anthropic fell through. Their philosophy and Apple's were more closely aligned. The reason Anthropic even exists in the first place is because its owners didn't like the way things were going at Open AI.
falainber
macrumors 68040
If that is painful for you, then I have some very, very painful news…
Apple has been using Google servers to store people‘s iCloud data since at least 2018, likely earlier. They also used and or are still using Microsoft and Amazon cloud servers to power iCloud.
Apple ditches Microsoft Azure, confirms that it uses Google Cloud for iCloud
In a document updated last month, Apple confirmed that it uses Google Cloud Platform to host user data for iCloud. Interestingly, the file no longer makes a mention of Microsoft Azure.www.neowin.net
And there is nothing sneaky or unknown about this, Apple confirmed it almost a decade ago themselves.
Write from Apple‘s own mouth in 2018, they use Google servers to store iCloud data.
What often gets left out is all your data goes through Apple servers first where it’s processed and then encrypted (by Apple using keys Google doesn’t have access to) before being stored on Google servers.
Your privacy is 100% intact and Google has no idea what’s being stored or who it belongs to. Google can’t even use “fingerprinting” techniques to infer who the data belongs to.
You are 100% wrong on this. Perhaps read a few security papers on how it works before making false statements.
I asked Gemini, "does gemini get the "Heavy World Knowledge" requests via PCC and is it protected or made anonymous at a level that makes it impossible for google to ID a person? keep in mind, there are indirect ways to figure it out such as location data and knowing where an anonymous source sleeps" 😄
Answer, typically verbose...
This is the "billion-dollar question" of the 2026 AI era. You are right to be skeptical—anonymity is often an illusion if you have enough data points like "where a phone sleeps."
However, the architecture of the Apple-Gemini partnership is designed specifically to solve the "Sleeping Location" problem. Here is how it works technically:
1. The "Privacy Buffer" (The Identity Eraser)
When you ask a "Heavy World Knowledge" question (e.g., "What's the best hiking trail near me right now?"), the request doesn't go straight to Google. It goes through an Apple-controlled Privacy Buffer.
The goal is to make it computationally and legally impossible. While a "rogue" engineer could theoretically try to piece things together, several layers of defense prevent the "sleeping location" tracking you mentioned:
You mentioned Google Cloud earlier. The crucial distinction is who owns the "keys" to the data. Even when Apple uses Google Cloud servers for massive scale, they use Confidential Computing (specifically Google’s "Titanium Intelligence Enclave"). This encrypts the data while it is being processed.
Think of it like this: Google is the landlord providing the room (the server), but Apple brings their own safe (the encryption). Even Google, the landlord, can't see what's happening inside that safe.
Answer, typically verbose...
This is the "billion-dollar question" of the 2026 AI era. You are right to be skeptical—anonymity is often an illusion if you have enough data points like "where a phone sleeps."
However, the architecture of the Apple-Gemini partnership is designed specifically to solve the "Sleeping Location" problem. Here is how it works technically:
1. The "Privacy Buffer" (The Identity Eraser)
When you ask a "Heavy World Knowledge" question (e.g., "What's the best hiking trail near me right now?"), the request doesn't go straight to Google. It goes through an Apple-controlled Privacy Buffer.
- IP Masking: Apple strips your IP address and replaces it with a generic one from their own relay. Google sees a request coming from "Apple California," not your house.
- Tokenization: Your Apple ID is removed. To Google, the request is just a random string of numbers.
- Fuzzing Location: If location is needed, Apple doesn't send your GPS coordinates. It sends a "coarse" location (e.g., "North Seattle") that is just enough for the AI to answer the question but not enough to pinpoint a specific home.
The goal is to make it computationally and legally impossible. While a "rogue" engineer could theoretically try to piece things together, several layers of defense prevent the "sleeping location" tracking you mentioned:
- Stateless Processing: In the Enterprise-grade Gemini instances Apple uses, the session is "stateless." The moment the answer is sent, the server's memory is wiped. There is no "history" for Google to look back on and say, "This same anonymous user was at Point A last night and Point B this morning."
- No Cross-App Linking: Unlike using the Gemini app directly, where Google can see your Maps history, YouTube searches, and Gmail, the Apple version is isolated. Google has no way to link an anonymous Siri query to your actual Google account.
- Independent Audits: Apple has made the source code for the Private Cloud Compute (PCC) nodes available to security researchers. They can verify that the data really is being deleted and that no "backdoor" identifiers are being leaked to Google.
You mentioned Google Cloud earlier. The crucial distinction is who owns the "keys" to the data. Even when Apple uses Google Cloud servers for massive scale, they use Confidential Computing (specifically Google’s "Titanium Intelligence Enclave"). This encrypts the data while it is being processed.
Think of it like this: Google is the landlord providing the room (the server), but Apple brings their own safe (the encryption). Even Google, the landlord, can't see what's happening inside that safe.
falainber
macrumors 68040
"Even Google, the landlord, can't see what's happening inside that safe." But Apple can. What's the difference? Apple being as crappy at services in general as they are, I would not trust their encryption. I'd prefer Google.
DocMultimedia
macrumors 68030
I'm really tired of Apple pretending they can catch up at this point. Why make all devices have tons of RAM, just send the voice over to servers that Google runs for Apple. Apple just need to pay them and get it over with. I really don't want to wait for iOS 34. It's about to be two years since they announced Apple AI at the WWDC. How many more should we wait?
abowlby
macrumors 6502a
The privacy sales pitch was always a bridge spanning ocean front property in Arizona anyway.
xpaulso
macrumors regular
This likely has the most to do with Google's TPUs. Google Image search was the first true Consumer AI use case that justified designing silicone around the Model itself. Once Siri actually works, the demand will be extremely large. TPUs handle inference with about 1/3rd the cost of modern GPUs. Apple is likely working on something similar but its not ready yet.
mthomas184
macrumors 6502a
Jason2000
macrumors 6502
Yep and you can lay that directly at the feed of Cook. He acts like an idiot when it comes to technical innovation.
macsince2008
macrumors member
