A NEW artificial intelligence (AI) feature on iPhones is set to be updated by Apple after giving consumers inaccurate news alerts.
In a statement, the tech giant said it was working on a software change to “further clarify” when notification summaries have been generated by AI.
The summaries pop-up on iPhone screens like every other notification, and are designed to condense long or stacked notifications.
However, they are pushed with the logo of the reporting news outlet – making it seem as though they are coming from within the organisation’s app and not via AI.
It follows a complaint by the BBC last month after AI-generated summaries of its headlines were false.
One incorrect summary told iPhone owners that Luigi Mangione, the man accused of killing UnitedHealthcare CEO Brian Thompson, had shot himself.
On Friday, the BBC also reported notifications falsely claiming that Spanish tennis star Rafael Nadal had come out as gay and that Luke Littler had won the PDC World Darts Championship before it even began.
“These AI summarisations by Apple do not reflect – and in some cases completely contradict – the original BBC content,” the BBC said in a statement.
“It is critical that Apple urgently addresses these issues as the accuracy of our news is essential in maintaining trust.”
Apple rolled out its first Apple Intelligence AI features in late October, with a second tranche that included the AI summaries tool following in December.
Currently, the AI update is only available on iPhone 16 models, iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max handsets.
The features, which include a raft of perks including a smarter Siri and writing tools, have been met with a largely positive reception.
However, Apple has admitted that its Apple Intelligence features are still “in beta” – meaning it may contain flaws that need to be ironed out in future iOS updates.
“We are continuously making improvements with the help of user feedback,” Apple said in a statement on Monday.
“A software update in the coming weeks will further clarify when the text being displayed is summarisation provided by Apple Intelligence. We encourage users to report a concern if they view an unexpected notification summary.”
Receiving AI summaries is optional – so if you want to turn them off, here’s how:
