Apple has launched a virtual agent, marking the tech giant’s first official foray into the world of AI-powered support chatbots.
Dubbed the Support Assistant, the agent is available within the Apple Support app.
Yet, it’s currently only for some users, with a disclaimer confirming the chatbot is currently available in early preview.
The chatbot can tackle everyday device and service issues by giving users instant answers and sparing them the hassle of waiting for a live agent.
However, the solution will not answer any queries that do not pertain to Apple support.
At present, the AI chatbot lives in its own dedicated tab within the Apple Support app next to Activities.
First-time users are greeted with a splash screen that introduces the feature and outlines what it can do.
In addition, when starting a chat, users receive the following message:
You are chatting with Apple’s automated Support Assistant. This experimental feature may make mistakes.
The transparency surrounding the tool’s use of AI is also referenced in the Support Assistant Terms of Use, which states:
“Support Assistant uses generative models. You understand and agree that generative models may occasionally generate incorrect, misleading, incomplete, offensive, or harmful outputs.
“To the extent you choose to use Support Assistant, you do so at your own initiative and are responsible for compliance with any applicable laws.”
A Start, But Apple Should Have Much Greater Ambitions
We’ve all been there, you agonize about whether it’s worth heading to your friend’s party late, finally bite the bullet and turn up, only to immediately realize that you’ve made the wrong call.
The place is emptying out as if a Fire alarm has gone off, there’s cold pizza and half-drunk beers aplenty, one of your friends is being sick into a bucket, while the other is arguing with their significant other about why it’s vitally important to stay for one more drink. Meanwhile, you’re wondering what joys you might have enjoyed if you’d turned up a few hours earlier.
This is what Apple’s Support Assistant feels like.
Accounts from early users suggest that the chatbot works well, but considering Apple’s reputation and how long it’s taken the company to enter the space, it feels a little basic.
Indeed, one way in which the company could have elevated the Support Assistant is by combining its capabilities with Siri.
By allowing users to raise queries directly with Siri, rather than having to navigate a separate feature within an app, Apple would have presented something different.
And it doesn’t need to stop there.
Siri has the potential to be a genuine game-changer for Apple. Instead of merely answering questions about your iPhone, Siri could be deployed a personal assistant.
With this assistant, consumers could schedule appointments, chase refunds, dispute bills, and more.
Given the limited nature of the Support Assistant, this may feel a little pie in the sky, but it’s the direction Google is already heading.
Earlier this year, the search giant even revealed that it is developing an on-device AI assistant that can take phone calls for users.
Crucially, it’s aiming to run all this on-device, preserving privacy while unlocking autonomy.
In contrast, Apple’s move feels underwhelming.
That said, Siri’s potential to become a true personalized assistant is enormous, and Apple must recognize this.
However, unless Apple accelerates, it risks falling even further behind in the AI agent race.