Apple Delays Apple Intelligence Siri Features

[MacRumors]

Apple is delaying some of the Apple Intelligence Siri features that it expected to release in iOS 18, an Apple spokesperson said in a statement to Daring Fireball.

Apple says that it is going to take longer than expected to roll out the more personalized Siri experience, and that these features will be rolled out "in the coming year."

"Siri helps our users find what they need and get things done quickly, and in just the past six months, we've made Siri more conversational, introduced new features like type to Siri and product knowledge, and added an integration with ChatGPT. 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."

The personalized Siri features that Apple is talking about were demonstrated at WWDC when introducing iOS 18, and they were expected to come out in an update to iOS 18. The functionality includes personal context, onscreen awareness, and improved app integration. A quick summary:

Personal Context

With personal context, Siri will be able to keep track of emails, messages, files, photos, and more, learning more about you to help you complete tasks and keep track of what you've been sent.

• Show me the files Eric sent me last week.
• Find the email where Eric mentioned ice skating.
• Find the books that Eric recommended to me.
• Where's the recipe that Eric sent me?
• What's my passport number?

Onscreen Awareness

Onscreen awareness will let Siri see what's on your screen and complete actions involving whatever you're looking at. If someone texts you an address, for example, you can tell Siri to add it to their contact card. Or if you're looking at a photo and want to send it to someone, you can ask Siri to do it for you.

Deeper App Integration

Deeper app integration means that Siri will be able to do more in and across apps, performing actions and completing tasks that are just not possible with the personal assistant right now. We don't have a full picture of what Siri will be capable of, but Apple has provided a few examples of what to expect.

• Moving files from one app to another.
• Editing a photo and then sending it to someone.
• Get directions home and share the ETA with Eric.
• Send the email I drafted to Eric.

Rumors suggested that Apple initially planned to introduce these features in iOS 18.4, but ahead of the first iOS 18.4 betas, there were reports that the functionality simply wasn't ready. Apple will debut an iOS 18.5 update after iOS 18.4, so we could see the new Siri features in that update, but it's possible we'll be waiting even longer. "In the coming year" is a bit vague, but it looks like the new Siri functionality will come sometime in the next 12 months.

Apple did already update Siri with a new Type to Siri feature, a refreshed look, ChatGPT integration, and more natural language understanding as part of its Apple Intelligence improvements, with more to come in the future.

Update: According to Reuters, the Apple Intelligence Siri features have been delayed until 2026.

Article Link: Apple Delays Apple Intelligence Siri Features

 

[Surgicalshark]

... I told you so...

 

[vertsix]

Pathetic. Under Tim's rule, they keep missing deadlines. Jobs wouldn't have had it.

 

[needsomecoffee]

The legend of John G. Apple finally has a proven, new manager for this group, yet will continue with John G. as the titular head to appease shareholders (not admit they screwed up the last 7 years or so).

From the link below: "Apple pays and has been paying John Giannandrea, Senior Vice President of Machine Learning and AI Strategy, millions upon millions of dollars for years. WTF of any import does he really do? WTF of any import has he really delivered? Have you used Siri lately? Yup, it’s still a steaming pile of *******."

Apple looks to license Google Gemini for iPhone, generative AI tools

Apple is in talks to build Google’s Gemini artificial intelligence engine into iPhone, iPad, and other platforms, people familiar with the…

macdailynews.com

 

[Surgicalshark]

I was thinking about my daily interactions with Siri, every single interaction is worse than the previous and overall experience can't get any worse. Right thing for Apple to do is to scrap Siri brand and launch something that people trust and believe in.

If it were up to Apple, I would have thought LLM models only exist in sci-fi movies and Google/Open/Anthropic are selling snake oil.

 

[AppliedMicro]

No problem - nor shame - in touting devices as “made for AI” though.

 

[mrjtown]

This is getting embarrassing now.

 

[rchaser]

Me:“Siri, how many steps have I taken today?”

Siri: “ you will have to unlock your phone first.

It just works.

 

[twistedpixel8]

Cook’s cooked. Time for a restructuring.

 

[Apple_Robert]

Siri AI is not imperative this minute. We have used our phones without it for years. Patience is needed. Not a big deal to me.

 

[tyranne201]

Apple Maps transit still hasn't arrived in my city of more than 2 million people. Apple is so way behind.

 

[TechWhisperer]

I anticipated this would happen. WWDC is going to be one big gaslight event about Apple’s “amazing AI features” (not) coming in September, then (not) coming in spring 2025, and then it gets postponed ad nauseam. Apple should just admit that they were sleeping, caught off guard and was outmaneuvered by the novel AI tech companies as Tim was too busy promoting Ted Lasso and his failing Vision Pro legacy.

It’s becoming more embarrassing each day.

Told you so! 👆

 

[WhackyNinja]

Just kill Siri at this point and start over

 

[fwmireault]

Jobs wouldn't have it.

"You’re asking Siri the wrong way"
- Jobs, probably

 

[Veinticinco]

Apple’s mantra used to be “Think Different”.

Now replaced with “This is Gonna Take Longer Than We Thought”.

 

[Abobrek]

Apple should have learned from AirPower by not showing something until it is ready to be released. I wonder what this means for iOS 19.

 

[Dulcimer]

The Siri org must be so fundamentally broken. They can’t integrate or work with the rest of Apple’s AI teams? Not willing to move to GPT systems? Just makes no sense how it’s been so bad for so long.

 

[UpsideDownEclair]

Just you wait though! Come September we’re seeing their new tagline: “Hello, Apple Intelligence – for real this time” How embarrassing

 

[rchaser]

Cook’s cooked. Time for a restructuring.

So past due.

He appears to be immune to fumbles.

Apple needs new blood at the top, someone that can manage product development/customer experience AND value for shareholders.

 

[carswell]

Totally predictable.

Have always believed in "If you're going to do it, do it right," but really, Apple?

 

[Gengar]

Siri has always been a dummy. My HomePod barely gets song commands right. Some of it is on these artists too though, putting titles in all caps or all lowercase.

 

[arkitect]

Siri AI is not imperative this minute. We have used our phones without it for years. Patience is needed. Not a big deal to me.

Well, sure, you're not wrong and I myself am not all aflame for the supposed usefulness of these features, but… but!

Why did Apple feel compelled to announce it and market the iPhone as AI ready? Surely they could have waited?

I think we all know the answer as to why they did.

 

[WarmWinterHat]

🥱

Apple AI is disabled now, and it'll stay disabled whenever they (maybe) release new Siri. Whatever..

 

[tipoo]

This has been a colossal miss by Tim and Apple, it's not last but best, it's last and last so far

Total matter of speculation here, but I think Steve's brain would have been on fire learning about the modern take on AI, the question of computers just doing one thing at a time instead of us just telling them to do something and they go off and do all the steps for it has come up many times during his career even that I can think of, it's been on his mind, and the modern method allows that. I think he would have seen a hard pivot in software and made a much harder pivot towards it.

Tim is the kind of guy to go, oh, that's not so big right now, maybe we'll do a bit of playing around in it, but he didn't go as big, as fast as needed, and now they're years behind with ACDC (their take on Nvidia H200s) not even scaling till 2026+ which makes the word of a conversational Siri not happening till 2027 now with iOS20 make sense. And imagine how bad it would be if even ACDC remains far behind Nvidia by 2027, and they have a lot less to train actual LLM Siri in iOS20 on even still....

 

[Andres Cantu]

But we got your iPhone 16 and 16 Pro money, hope you weren't expecting better timelines!

Really unacceptable for Apple to be promising things that aren't ready. They really wanted that AI stock bump, it seems like.