Apple devices include an "Improve Siri & Dictation" setting that, when enabled, allows Apple to store and review audio recordings and transcripts from Siri, dictation and translation interactions. Many users may have switched this on during device setup years ago without realising the scope of what they were agreeing to, and it remains especially relevant as Apple expands its AI ambitions with the new Siri arriving in iOS 27 and features such as the Apple Watch's Live Rewind, which transcribes conversations.

Apple employees can review this data, alongside contextual details like device specifications, request location and timing, to fine-tune Siri, Search, Translate and speech recognition models, with voice data typically retained for up to two years, though some may persist longer. Apple says recordings are linked not to a user's account but to a random device identifier that rotates hourly, reviews are limited to staff under confidentiality obligations, and the data is not sold to marketers, though it may be shared with third-party service providers. Users are prompted to choose this setting during initial device setup, or the first time they use Siri, dictation or translation features, and can change it later in settings.