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Android 12 brought a major focus on privacy and security with features like microphone and camera toggles and a much better privacy dashboard. Most of these features are well-explained, but the "Private Compute Core" was a bit of a mystery. We and others have speculated about what exactly it does and how, but a newly unearthed comment by long-time Google developer Diane Hackborn lays it all out.
Here's what Android 12's new Private Compute Core is actually going to do
Google's opening up features that live under the rebranded name for public review, with more planned for later
Yesterday, when Android 12 Beta 5 rolled out, we spotted an apparent rebranding for Google's old Device Personalization Services, picking up the new Private Compute Core name. The stuff actually in that section of Settings remained the same, though, and Google told us the name would be a thing back when it announced Beta 2. Now the company is sharing more about its plans and what, precisely, a "Private Compute Core" means.
Google rebranding Device Personalization Services as Private Compute Core in Android 12 hints at further changes to come
Right now it's just a name change, but it could mean more later
When Google announced the Android 12 Beta back in May, one tiny change slipped in under the radar and didn't actually show up until today. As part of the privacy-centric changes in Android 12, Google said it would roll out a new "Android Private Compute Core," in charge of on-device AI features like Live Caption, Now Playing, and Smart Reply. Well, the feature is now "live" in Android 12 Beta 5, but it's basically just a rebranding of the existing Device Personalization Services — though it might mean more later.