Apple plans to start using images it collects for Maps to train its AI models. In a disclosure spotted by 9to5Mac, the company said starting this month it would use images it captures to provide its Look Around feature for the additional purpose of training some of its generative AI models.
Look Around is Apple's answer to Google Street View. The company originally released the feature alongside its 2019 revamp of Apple Maps. The tool allows users to see locations from ground level. Apple blurs faces and license plates photographed in Look Around images to protect the privacy of any individuals caught in its survey efforts.
"In addition to improving Apple Maps and the algorithms that blur faces and license plates in images published in Look Around feature, Apple also will use blurred imagery collected during surveys conducted beginning in March 2025 to develop and improve other Apple products and services," the company writes in the disclosure. "This includes using data to train models powering Apple products and services, including models related to image recognition, creation, and enhancement."
Apple did not immediately respond to Engadget's request for more information.
The company's Apple Maps image collection policy page provides a list of regions and dates when it plans to collect new images for Look Around. People can find when Apple's survey crews and vehicles plan to visit their area by sorting by country and then clicking on a specific region.
Apple currently offers a few different features that rely on image generation models. Image Playground, for instance, allows owners of Apple Intelligence-compatible devices to write a prompt to create a new image. There's also Clean Up in Photos, which you can use to remove objects from your favorite snapshots.
Google has been using Street View images to train AI models for years. In 2017, for example, a pair of researchers from the company trained a machine learning model to generate professional-looking photographs from a dataset collected from Street View.
This article originally appeared on Engadget at https://www.engadget.com/ai/apple-will-use-its-street-view-maps-photos-to-train-ai-models-150919972.html?src=rss https://www.engadget.com/ai/apple-will-use-its-street-view-maps-photos-to-train-ai-models-150919972.html?src=rssLogin to add comment
Other posts in this group
These are some recently released titles we think are worth adding to your reading list. This week, we're diving into Alex Foster's futuristic debut, Circular Motion, and the return of
OpenAI has achieved "gold medal-level performance" at the International Math Olympiad, notching another important milestone for AI's fast-paced growth. Alexander Wei, a research scientist at OpenAI
Looks like we can skip the drum roll for the next Battl
Welcome to our weekly roundup of the goings on in the indie game space. It's been quite the busy spell, with several notable games debuting or landing on more platforms and some intriguing upcoming
If I had to describe the status of Subnautica 2 in just three words, it would be these: messy, messy, messy. That’s not to say the game itself is in terrible shape — this is actually a piv
