This week, a report by Wired revealed that Apple, NVIDIA, and other tech companies were using hundreds of thousands of YouTube videos to train their AIs. The YouTube Subtitles dataset had video transcripts from education and online learning channels, from MIT and Harvard to Mr. Beast, MKBHD, and PewDiePie.
After the controversy, Apple confirmed to 9to5Mac that its open-source OpenELM models used this dataset. However, Cupertino claims they don’t power AI, machine learning, or Apple Intelligence features.
According to the publication, Apple “created the OpenELM model as a way of contributing to the research community and advancing open source large language model development (…). OpenELM was created only for research purposes, not for use to power any of its Apple Intelligence features.”
In a previous statement, Apple said it doesn’t use users’ private personal data or interactions when training its foundation models, as they’re trained on “licensed data.”
Why has the Apple Intelligence beta launch been delayed?
While Apple claims it hasn’t been using stolen or users’ personal content for its AI, it’s interesting to note that the official Apple Intelligence beta launch has been delayed. Previously, the company stated that it would launch as a test this summer alongside the iOS 18 public beta.
The public beta was released, and Apple issued a new developer’s beta 3 build, but Apple Intelligence isn’t available. In addition, the blog post that said the company’s AI would launch this summer with the public beta has been removed.
The only reference for its launch is “later this fall” as a beta feature, alongside iOS 18, iPadOS 18, and macOS Sequoia.
Although this doesn’t mean Apple has delayed its AI launch to remove references to stolen content, it’s interesting that Wired’s report and Cupertino’s removal of references to its Apple Intelligence release coincide.
You can learn more about it below.
