To counter the suddenly crowded AI market, the company plans to offer a combination of on-device and server processing. It is reported that Apple has already built custom M2 and M4 chips for AI servers. In recent years, the company has committed to protecting user data. AI and how it is implemented have created a lot of privacy and security concerns.

According to a new report from Information, Apple plans to process data from AI applications in a "virtual black box."A former Apple employee told the magazine that this black box would make it impossible for employees to access their data.

Internally, the company has been working on a secret project called data center Apple Chips (ACDC, hardy-har-har). ACDC is supposed to allow black box processing. 

Generally, when a cloud server processes data, it is encrypted on disk only when the data is at rest. However, to process and transfer the data, it must be decrypted and made into memory.

ACDC is an industry term that sounds like a form of confidential computing and means that data is kept private while it is being processed.

Apple makes its own chipsets for servers and devices, so the company can control the system and design more secure systems. According to the sources the information spoke to, it has an advantage over competitors that rely on Intel or AMD.

According to the report, Apple has been working on several versions of its confidential computing initiative for the past 3 years, well before the recent AI boom. 

It has been speculated that by offloading AI processing from the device, Apple could create lightweight wearable devices that do not require powerful chips or cooling means. A former Apple employee claimed the company has ambitions to design lightweight headsets and glasses.  With speculation that Google has ai smart glasses, it's no surprise that Apple wants to compete in that market. Apple devices currently use a feature called Secure Enclave to keep user data private.

It is part of a chip that is physically separated from the main processor, also like fingerprints captured by fingerprint sensors, passwords, and encryption keys.

But how does Apple's plan work when a broad user base starts sending multiple requests to a single chip that serves multiple users? It is not clear how this will remain so safe. It's also unclear how quickly Apple can expand. 

Currently, Apple is behind its competitors in the AI market, arguing that most of the information is due to the company's stance on privacy.

Apple recently confirmed that WWDC will start on Monday 6/10 and run until 6/14. We plan to cover everything the company has announced, including its upcoming AI strategy, so check back to us in the meantime.