Apple confirms long delay for AI-boosted Siri assistant

Apple is working on enhancing its AI capabilities across its ecosystem, similar to Google’s implementation with Gemini. However, Siri, Apple’s virtual assistant, still lags behind and has not yet received the features showcased at the developers conference last year.

Recently, Apple confirmed that the revamped Siri, which will have access to locally stored user data and the ability to interact with apps, has been delayed until next year. Internally referred to as “LLM Siri,” the upgraded version may not be fully available until 2027.

According to an Apple spokesperson quoted by Daring Fireball, “We’ve also been working on a more personalized Siri, giving it more awareness of your personal context, as well as the ability to take action for you within and across your apps. It’s going to take us longer than we thought to deliver on these features and we anticipate rolling them out in the coming year.”

Apple had initially planned to launch the improved Siri experience in April with the iOS 18.4 update. However, concerns raised by top Apple executives, including Craig Federighi, about potential issues during internal testing have led to the delay, as reported by Bloomberg.

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There are speculations that the planned features may be scrapped entirely, prompting Apple to start from scratch. As an interim measure, Apple has partnered with OpenAI to integrate ChatGPT capabilities on iPhones and Macs, incorporating it into Siri as part of the Apple Intelligence stack.

Despite the integration of ChatGPT offering advanced language and multimodal capabilities, such as image generation and file analysis, Siri still lacks essential features like contextual responses based on user data and deep interaction with installed apps.

Google’s Gemini, now available on high-end Android devices, can leverage data from its Workspace products like Gmail, Docs, Maps, and YouTube. Additionally, through extensions, it can convert voice commands into actionable steps across various apps, including third-party apps like Spotify.

Apple seems to have fallen behind in this aspect, and the recent delays do not reflect well on the company’s innovation streak. However, Apple has made progress in other areas, such as partnering with Alibaba and Baidu in China to accelerate the development of Apple Intelligence for the local market.