Google yesterday held its annual hardware event, announcing new Pixel smartphones, Pixel Watch, and Pixel Buds.
The company took a few jabs at Apple along the way, attacking it on both hardware and AI fronts, including one claim which should win a prize for sheer ridiculousness …
Google’s Pixel launches
Our sister site 9to5Google of course has full coverage of the event, including:
- Pixel 9 Pro and Pro XL launch with Satellite SOS, Android 14, $999 starting price
- Google announces Pixel Watch 3 in 41 and 45 mm
- Pixel Buds Pro 2 feature Gemini Live, Tensor A1 chip, and 2x ANC for $229
- Google’s Pixel 9 Pro Fold launches in September for $1,799
- Google launches AI-loaded Pixel 9 at $799
- Gemini is the default Pixel 9 assistant as Gemini Live starts rolling out on Android
- Pixel 9 adds Call Notes recording & transcription, free Satellite SOS for two years
Google’s jabs at Apple
The Verge highlighted the points at which the company took digs at Apple, starting with the fact that Google’s AI features are available in 45 languages.
[Android president Sameer Samat] mentioned that “Gemini is available around the world right now, far beyond English speakers and a single market.” That final clarification seems to be a direct shot at Apple Intelligence, which isn’t widely rolled out yet and will only be available to English speakers in the US once it launches this fall.
Google took a chance on live demos, in contrast to Apple’s switch to pre-recorded keynote presentations, and made sure we knew it.
Google’s Dave Citron took the stage to demonstrate some of Gemini’s AI features, boldly announcing: “All of the demos we’re doing today are live, by the way.”
The risk of that was demonstrated when he had to switch phones after the first one proved unresponsive during his demo.
Google also noted that customers can choose between the Pixel 9 Pro and Pro XL without sacrificing any features.
They have the same incredible display, sleek design, premium craftsmanship, processing power, and the same Pro Pixel camera
That appeared to be a swipe at the fact that you have to buy the iPhone 15 Pro Max if you want the 5x telephoto camera. The company also contrasted night shots taken by each of the company’s flagship models, with the Pixel result notably better.
One absurd claim
Google’s most absurd claim, however, was the suggestion that it was more careful with your personal data than Apple.
Gemini can handle these kinds of complex personal queries within Google’s own secure cloud without sending any of your personal data to a third-party AI provider who you may not know or trust.
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Read Google's claim carefully.
Gemini can handle these kinds of complex personal queries within Google’s own secure cloud without sending any of your personal data to a third-party AI provider who you may not know or trust.
Google is not saying that it will not use your personal data in its business model. It is not saying that it will not draw information about you from that data for sale to a wide variety third-parties. All it is claiming is that it will not be "sending any of your personal data to a third-party AI provider."
The only exclusions are:
(1) The actual personal data it has collected about you, but not any inferences it makes about from that data about your interests or politics.
(2) The sale will not be made to other "AI providers." There is no mention of excluding companies wanting to target their advertising or of governments seeking out people with contrary political views. Google gives up nothing by not working with a "third-party AI provider." Those are its competitors.
In short, Google promises nothing that matters. It won't sell the specific personal data it has about you because that's where its profits lie. It can still sell any information it draws to anyone but one of its AI competitors.
For the record I was one of a handful of authors who blocked the infamous Google Book Settlement. Google's public statements about what that settlement meant were similarly deceptive. Google has no ethics, but it does have very clever lawyers.
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Apple has partnered with OpenAI to have more general knowledge type queries handled by ChatGPT.
This is, of course, a ridiculous point given that Google makes most of its money by collecting and monetizing personal data.
Apple Intelligence uses on-device processing wherever possible, and its own Private Cloud Compute where more processing power is needed. The privacy of this processing is independently verifiable, thanks to “an extraordinary step” in its design.
ChatGPT is used only where access to external knowledge is needed. In these cases, Apple asks user permission before the handoff, and it anonymizes these requests before handing them to OpenAI. Finally, its agreement with the company means that no Apple user data can be used to train OpenAI’s models.
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