Forgot what you just said? Or missed an important detail in your colleague's speech? Apple Watch Series 12 offers a solution that sounds like science fiction but is already available: the Live Rewind feature. It allows you to instantly get a text transcription of the last 15 seconds of any conversation right on your wrist.
This capability, made possible by the new S11 chip and the Apple Intelligence system, works on a buffer principle. The audio stream is processed in a secure enclave, and after the transcript is generated, the raw data is deleted. This means no recording is saved, and therefore, no traces for potential investigations. Essentially, it's like a dashcam for your dialogues, but without actual recording.
In addition to Live Rewind, there's the Siri Recap feature, capable of summarizing longer conversations, highlighting key moments, and generating titles. This can be useful in meetings or during lectures. Additionally, a sound recognition system will alert you to emergency signals or a baby's cry, and the built-in Shazam will help identify a playing song even if your phone is in your pocket. All these functions operate locally, preserving privacy.
Live Rewind and Siri Recap require the Siri AI mode to be enabled, which is currently in beta and will be gradually rolled out, starting with the English language. An iPhone 16 or newer will be required for operation. Apple Watch Series 12 with these capabilities is now available for pre-order.