Apple comments on renewed Siri delay
The stock market did not take it well: Apple shares fell 5 percent on Thursday following reports of Siri problems. The company is commenting.
It will surely come eventually: An improved Siri.
(Image: Koshiro K / Shutterstock)
Following a report that Apple will likely postpone its context-aware (and thus improved) voice assistant Siri again by several months, a stock market earthquake occurred on Thursday: The iPhone manufacturer's shares lost a total of 5 percent on the US technology stock exchange NASDAQ. Reports of complaints from the US communications regulator FTC to Apple News did the rest. Apple felt compelled to make a public statement – and did so to the American business news channel CNBC.
On course without a deadline
However, the statements were brief. The company merely stated that the improved Siri is still “on course for [a launch in the year] 2026.” Apple had never committed to a specific date until now, but there were repeated reports citing insiders confirming that the original implementation plan was intended for iOS 26.4. Bloomberg had now reported that Apple will likely not make it even by then, as there are renewed problems with the software – this time presumably due to the integration of Google's Gemini models.
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Instead of a complete launch with iOS 26.4 in March, the plan is now to distribute the features across versions, including iOS 26.5 and possibly further versions. A true chatbot Siri is not expected before iOS 27. This will also be released in 2026 – as usual, probably in September. With its statement, Apple is keeping the door open to delay the innovations again. Whether this will happen is unclear, however.
Step by step to a better Siri
Apple launched its voice assistant as one of the first companies of its caliber back in 2011. Over the years, there have only been very “gentle” improvements, and users often complain about issues with understanding and, above all, the intelligence of the system. In the summer of 2024, Apple announced that it wanted to AI-enable Siri – with so-called context-aware functions and access to apps and the things visible on the screen. Finally, the company had to admit that the Siri upgrade would not be ready.
The idea is now to introduce the features announced in 2024 as part of iOS 26. Simpler Gemini models are intended to help, running locally as well as in Apple's own cloud. A real chatbot will then be available with iOS 27, as mentioned – based on better Gemini models, which will then also directly use Google's cloud, albeit, according to Apple's plan, in a privacy-friendly manner.
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