Artificial intelligence from Apple: Siri as a real chatbot and AI to pin on
According to a report, Apple's voice assistant is said to become a real chatbot thanks to Gemini. Another rumor concerns the company's first AI wearable.
So far, rather semi-intelligent compared to the competition: Apple Intelligence.
(Image: Apple)
What's next for Apple Intelligence? Following the announced cooperation with Google, where Gemini is to become Apple's core AI model, new information about the company's strategy has emerged. This concerns, on the one hand, the way Siri will be positioned in the future – and on the other hand, the company's first purely AI-focused hardware, which is apparently planned as a competitor to upcoming OpenAI AI wearables, built by none other than former Apple design boss Jony Ive.
Finally conversing with Siri
The new information about Siri comes from the usually well-informed Bloomberg editor Marc Gurman. The voice assistant is to become a fully-fledged chatbot “later this year.” Apple had always denied such plans. Now the company is said to be entering the chatbot race, which is dominated primarily by OpenAI and Google.
The system, codenamed Campos, is to be deeply integrated into the operating system of the iPhone, iPad, and Mac. The service will be activatable via keyword or button press, as Siri has been so far. Its functionality will be greater than what Siri currently offers – and what Apple has announced but not yet implemented. As a chatbot, Siri will be able to remember conversations and interact in full dialogues.
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However, it will not arrive with iOS 26.4, with which Apple intends to roll out context-sensitive features that have been announced for a long time. These also include screen content recognition and better app integration. The Siri chatbot is then to be presented at the WWDC developer conference in June and could then be released in the fall as part of iOS 27, macOS 27, and iPadOS 27. The AI features are said to be the main innovation this year, according to Gurman. Internally, Apple has likely also tested a Siri app reminiscent of Gemini and ChatGPT. However, this idea will not be implemented; instead, Apple is focusing on integration. This also means that the Siri chatbot can control device functions – and also master tasks within apps. The Gemini version that Apple is using has been broadly adapted. It goes by the internal name Apple Foundation Model 10 and can also be replaced.
With Wearable Against OpenAI?
A second report states that Apple is interested for the first time in developing its own AI wearable. The hardware, which appears to be more than just a research project, reportedly resembles an AirTag tracker, according to sources from IT magazine The Information, but will be equipped with multiple cameras, a speaker, microphones, and wireless charging. If the hardware were to come to market, it would allegedly happen very quickly: the target is 2027. The AI wearable would be reminiscent of so-called AI pins that gloriously failed in the market. A corresponding project, led by an ex-Apple designer, had to leave the market again after a short time and was declared by critics to be one of the worst devices of recent years.
However, OpenAI is taking the idea of an AI wearable very seriously: CEO Sam Altman is working directly with former Apple design icon Jony Ive and has invested billions in his company io. There are reportedly four products in the pipeline: a pin, a pen, glasses, and a speaker; possibly also earplugs. Apparently, this has prompted Apple to develop an attachable AI after all. The company wants to build up to 20 million units and is moving faster than usual, according to an informed source. The AI pin is said to be thin, flat, and round and consist of an aluminum and glass casing.
The two cameras, one with a standard lens and one with a wide-angle lens, are intended to capture photos and videos of the surroundings. It is still unclear whether Apple will link the AI wearable with devices like smartglasses or AirPods. The company is reportedly considering that customers should buy several units, similar to AirTags. How much AI processing will occur on the device itself is unclear. An iPhone may also be required. Apple is likely to use Google technology in the AI wearable as well. The company has not responded to inquiries on the topic.
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