Myth vs. Fact
Separating technological reality from urban legend.
Myth
"They stream 100% of my conversations to the cloud."
Fact
Streaming 24/7 audio from billions of devices is economically and technically unfeasible. They rely on wake words, local buffers, and metadata inference instead.
Myth
"I got an ad for a product I only thought about, so they must be reading my mind."
Fact
Predictive modeling is incredibly accurate. If they know your demographics, location history, and recent purchases of your peers, they can predict your needs before you articulate them.
Myth
"Turning off 'Personalized Ads' stops the tracking."
Fact
It only stops the *display* of personalized ads. The background collection and profile building continue unabated.
Myth
"Only smart speakers listen."
Fact
Smart TVs, smartwatches, connected cars, and certain mobile apps with broad permissions are equally, if not more, active in collecting acoustic and environmental metadata.