Why Does Signal Want an Opt-out From Phone AI?

Meredith Whittaker says Signal blocked screenshots on desktop a little over a year ago, after Microsoft Recall started watching what people did on their computers. Signal is preparing the same kind of block for an AI Siri in iOS 27 and for Gemini on Android. Other phone makers ship their own agents, and an app like Muse can still ask for access from the side.

Signal is asking Microsoft, Apple, and Google for a switch an app developer can use to opt out of AI access to its data. She says the stakes are life or death for investigative reporters, people in Ukraine, and anyone else who uses Signal because no other mass messenger offers the same privacy. Apple leads its AI pitch with privacy and a private cloud, and Signal has had good conversations there. That means verifying the protection, not taking Apple's word for it.