Apple already shipped attestation on the web, and we barely noticed

Yesterday, the sentiment on Google's early proposal was "company breakups start to make a lot of sense", "Go f yourself, Google", "It's maddening and saddening", "[the people involved] reputations are fully gone from this".

Today it turns out Apple not only proposed but implemented and shipped the actual feature last year. "It could be an interesting opportunity to reboot a few long-lost dreams". "I kind of get both sides here". "I guess I personally come down to leaving this turned on in Safari for now, and seeing what happens". Granted, the overall sentiment is still negative but the difference in tone is stark. The reality distortion field is alive and well, folks.

It’s really not the same intention or implementation.

We should also consider that Apple’s solution is a way to distinguish between human vs. Non human users on an Apple device. It doesn’t allow a service to randomly lockout browsers and/or OS (which Google’s proposal does), just that if you’re already on your Apple device, you don’t have to do a “verify I’m a human” captcha.

cf. https://developer.apple.com/wwdc22/10077

Why wouldn't it allow a service to do exactly that?

It's in the nature of the device you're using: an Apple device. This implies there are non-Apple devices out there who will inevitably fail the check.

It's also in the way Apple allows its use; however that's not as strong. Apple has positioned this as a way to prevent CAPTCHAs from reaching the customer. Apple is interjecting with the provider and saying Hey, trust us. We can prove its a human because they're saying they're on iPhone. They're not positioning this as a way to deny service. Only to speed up access.