Apple is piloting a new artificial intelligence tool designed for use at its Genius Bar locations that transcribes and summarizes conversations between employees and customers, a feature that has already prompted concerns among staff about how the resulting data might be used to evaluate their performance.

The tool, called Live Notes, was first reported by Bloomberg's "Power On" newsletter as part of the outlet's ongoing coverage of Apple's internal artificial intelligence initiatives. According to the report, Live Notes uses AI to listen to interactions between Genius Bar employees and customers, generating a transcript and summary of the conversation so that staff members can focus more fully on the customer in front of them rather than manually taking notes throughout the exchange.

How the tool is designed to work

Live Notes requires consent from both parties before activation, according to the report, meaning both the employee and the customer must agree to its use during any given interaction. There is currently no indication that Apple plans to make the tool mandatory for Genius Bar staff, and the available reporting suggests it is being introduced as an optional, time-saving feature rather than a company-wide requirement.

Despite those built-in consent requirements, some Genius Bar employees have reportedly expressed concern about the broader implications of having their customer interactions recorded, transcribed and summarized by........

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