Watch out: Apple timepiece can grab snippets of conversation without both speakers' consent

Apple's latest Watch Series 12, equipped with Audio Intelligence, is capable of capturing snippets of conversations without the consent of all parties involved. The feature includes Sound Recognition, Music Recognition with Shazam, Live Rewind, and Siri Recap. Live Rewind enables users to quickly access the last 15 seconds of a conversation as text, while Siri Recap provides high-level Apple Intelligence-generated notes about conversations throughout the day.

When the user initiates Live Rewind by double-pressing the Digital Crown, the device processes the audio stream in a Secure Exclave on the S11 chip and sends the text to a nearby iPhone for speech-to-text processing. Despite the audible tone and visual cue, bystanders have not given their consent to being recorded, which is a legal requirement in 11 US states with all-party consent laws.

Apple claims its implementation respects personal privacy through the audible chime and visual on-screen animation, but privacy advocates argue that the technology is still contemptuous of conversational privacy and may lead to self-censorship, diminishing the spontaneity and intimacy of conversations.