Apple's New Move in Enterprise AI Control! Not Just ChatGPT, Creating Backdoors for All External AI Providers
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Apple is crafting a powerful AI control tool tailored for enterprise clients! As AI technology rapidly integrates into corporate environments, the tech giant is set to launch new tools in its September software update, enabling IT administrators to precisely regulate when and where employees can use AI functionalities.
The most eye-catching feature is that Apple will offer enterprise clients the option to configure OpenAI's enterprise version of ChatGPT. OpenAI revealed that ChatGPT Enterprise already boasts over 5 million business users, with companies leveraging the service to seamlessly integrate AI agents with internal data. Apple clearly recognizes this substantial demand.
However, Apple's integration approach with ChatGPT Enterprise is forward-thinking. According to Apple's support documentation, IT administrators will not only be able to restrict or allow ChatGPT usage but, more importantly, they can apply the same controls to any 'external' AI provider. This design leaves ample room for Apple to collaborate with other enterprise AI giants in the future without requiring protocol-level recoding.
While rolling out new AI features like writing tools and visual intelligence to end-users, Apple is also providing corresponding access control measures for IT departments. Although the company is confident in its private cloud computing architecture, it understands that enterprises need time to evaluate sensitive system and data changes. Therefore, Apple grants businesses full autonomy to decide whether to process data in the cloud or locally on devices.
The brilliance of this system lies in the fact that enterprises can not only selectively enable AI features but also determine whether to allow employee AI requests to be sent to ChatGPT cloud services without an enterprise agreement with OpenAI. Since Apple's cloud services and ChatGPT operate in a non-direct connection mode, IT administrators can easily disable ChatGPT settings.
Beyond AI function control, Apple has prepared other enterprise-grade features for major clients. The company will introduce API interfaces for Apple Business Manager, allowing its functionalities to integrate with MDM products, inventory management services, or IT tools like help desks. Simultaneously, new device management tools will simplify the migration process between different management services, which is particularly useful in mergers and acquisitions scenarios.
Apple's 'Return to Service' solution has also been upgraded. This feature quickly cleans devices and prepares them for the next user, now with the added option to retain all installed applications, saving IT administrators and users time and bandwidth on reinstallation. Notably, Vision Pro devices are receiving Return to Service support for the first time.
On shared Mac devices, a new authenticated guest mode allows employees to log in using identity provider credentials, clearing only data upon logout while retaining applications. Another innovative feature enables enterprises to add NFC readers to Mac devices, allowing employees to log in with just a tap from their watch or phone.
All these new enterprise tools will be released in September alongside software updates for Apple's iPhone, iPad, and Mac devices, marking Apple's full-scale push into the enterprise AI control domain.