Google launches Private AI Compute, its answer to Apple’s Private Cloud Compute for secure, cloud-based AI

Google AI Compute

Google has unveiled Private AI Compute, a new platform designed to bring the full power of its Gemini AI models to users while keeping their personal data completely private — even from Google itself. The system is conceptually similar to Apple’s Private Cloud Compute and signals a broader industry push toward privacy-preserving AI that blends cloud intelligence with on-device security.

What is Google’s Private AI Compute?

Private AI Compute is Google’s next step in what it calls privacy-enhancing AI technology. The idea is to combine the computational strength of Gemini cloud models with on-device privacy protections. In simple terms, it lets your device tap into Google’s most powerful AI features — like summarising recordings or generating contextual suggestions — while ensuring no one, not even Google engineers, can access your private data.

How does it keep user data private?

According to Jay Yagnik, Vice President of AI Innovation and Research at Google, Private AI Compute runs inside a hardware-secured, sealed cloud environment built on the company’s custom Tensor Processing Units (TPUs). Using encryption and remote attestation, your device securely connects to this space to process data in isolation.

This entire setup, backed by Google’s Titanium Intelligence Enclaves (TIE), ensures that data processed through Private AI Compute remains accessible only to you — not Google, not developers, and not advertisers.

How is it different from on-device AI?

While on-device AI like that on Pixel phones prioritises privacy, it has limits in processing power. Private AI Compute bridges that gap by allowing sensitive tasks to use cloud-based Gemini models without compromising user privacy. That means smarter, faster responses in tools like Magic Cue and Recorder — which can now offer real-time summarisation across more languages.

Why it matters

Google’s Private AI Compute represents a major shift toward privacy-first cloud AI, echoing Apple’s approach but powered by Gemini. As AI assistants grow more capable and personal, Google’s new system ensures that intelligence doesn’t come at the cost of user trust.