Apple sends Siri developers to AI bootcamp

Apple is reportedly sending a larger number of its Siri voice assistant developers to an AI training course lasting several weeks, so they can learn how to use AI coding tools for programming. According to a new report, Apple wants to ensure the team catches up with other departments within the company. The work of the Siri team is particularly in the public eye this year, as it has so far failed to deliver the promised further development of the voice assistant in 2024.

It concerns fewer than 200 people from a group of several hundred developers in total. After the bootcamp, around 60 developers are to remain in the core Siri team. Another 60 are to remain for quality assurance and security evaluation. Apple apparently plans to form a smaller, more effective team that achieves higher efficiency with the help of AI coding tools.

Internally known as “laggards”

The report by The Information, which is based on unnamed sources within the company, builds on earlier publications that painted a rather dismal picture of the Siri department. The Siri team at Apple has reportedly been considered a laggard internally for years. There is talk of bloated structures and a lack of competitiveness.

The leaked information cannot be officially confirmed because Apple remains silent on such internal matters. However, the results and personnel upheavals of recent months and years suggest that things are not running smoothly in Apple's Siri department. The voice assistant, first released in 2011, was already lacking significant further development before the hype. But since the competition from chatbots like ChatGPT, Claude, and Gemini, Apple's Siri is looking decidedly old.

Restart with Gemini in iOS 27

This was supposed to change significantly with the introduction of Apple Intelligence, presented at the WWDC developer conference in 2024 – but it didn't. Instead, Apple had to publicly postpone the release of the announced AI Siri. Head of AI John Giannandrea resigned. In his place, Head of Software Craig Federighi has taken the helm. He has entrusted Mike Rockwell, who was responsible for the Vision Pro, with the responsibility for the further development of Siri.

With the announcement that Google's Gemini AI model will form the basis for AI Siri in the future, the hoped-for new beginning seemed to have been achieved. However, the current report from The Information suggests that the work to be done for modernization is apparently much more extensive than expected. Observers are surprised that Apple is sending parts of its Siri team to a training course two months before WWDC. However, it could indicate that the work required for iOS 27 is largely completed and the team's focus is already partly on the next steps.

At Apple's World Wide Developer Conference, which begins on June 8, the first concrete results of the Siri restart are expected with iOS 27. The new Siri is expected to better handle natural language, be more conversational, and be able to handle complex tasks. According to industry insiders, this also includes a real chatbot mode with its app, which will enable longer conversations and a search function.

(mki)