Microsoft this year teased a new feature for Windows called “Microsoft Recall,” which essentially captures snapshots of everything that happens on the PC and uses AI to let users quickly find something they’ve forgotten. After much controversy, the feature is now available in beta – and I believe Apple could do something similar on the Mac, but in the right way.
Microsoft Recall lets PC users revisit the past
For those unfamiliar, Microsoft Recall is a feature that lets users go back in time on their PC. Think of Time Machine on the Mac, but instead of revisiting old versions of a specific file, you can retrace all your steps on-screen. For example, Recall lets users quickly replay a meeting, recover deleted files or even view a webpage that is no longer available.
Even though Microsoft promised that the feature would be secure and private, many security researchers pointed out that Recall would be a security disaster. Hackers could access sensitive data if they gained access to the computer, which led Microsoft to delay the feature in order to improve it. For instance, users now have the option to exclude some apps from being captured by Recall.
Last week, a new beta version of Windows 11 was released with a preview of Windows Recall. Zac Bowden from Windows Central shared an in-depth demo of how the feature works – and after watching it, I found myself wondering what it would be like if Apple released a similar feature.
Apple should do the same with privacy in mind
On Windows, Microsoft Recall shows your computer screen in the center with a scrollable timeline at the top. However, when it comes to Apple, I can imagine something more integrated with the new Siri and Apple Intelligence. As announced at WWDC, Siri will soon gain the ability to learn personal context. This alone could be used as the foundation for a Recall-like feature.
Apple has demonstrated things like being able to ask Siri about messages and emails you’ve sent to someone in the past. Imagine this expanded to even more apps and parts of the system. And of course, the Time Machine interface on the Mac could easily be repurposed for a feature like this.
But the main point here is not about the feature itself, but about privacy. As you may know, most Apple Intelligence data is processed on-device and stored with encryption. That in itself would make me feel better about using an Apple “Recall” feature versus a solution from Microsoft or other companies. Apple would also certainly give users a lot of control over whether or not to store sensitive data.
Again, I’d love to see something like this on Mac and iOS, and I really believe that Apple can build a “revisit the past” feature with privacy in mind.
What about you? What do you think of this idea? Let me know in the comments section below.
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