Kuo: Apple Upgrading iPhone 16 Microphone to Boost Siri AI Experience

[ApplesAreSweet&Sour]

Well, that’s a massive improvement. I can’t wait for the new Siri, though it will be a bummer that some features will be locked to the 16’s

I expect pretty much every single post iPhones 16 upgrade for Siri to be limited to iPhones 16 and newer, AI assisted or not.

Apple will add a new “Language Co-Processor” chip and position it as being required for AI features.

Brilliant opportunity to have us upgrade to iPhones 16 in a time where advances to the SoC are slowing more and more each year.

All our other Apple devices will probably also have to be upgraded to newer models with the new chip to get access to AI assisted Siri.

 

[darngooddesign]

The microphone is not the problem, it even sucks in a quiet room. Since it mostly runs Google searches, “this is what I found on the web for…”, Siri is probably also part of the $18B per year deal with Google.

 

[klasma]

So either the HomePod mini and iPad Pro microphones are shіt as well, or this is not really Siri's problem.

 

[Marty80]

This was long overdue and another welcome upgrade, the iphone 16 & pro is shaping up to be a big year.

 

[Wayfarer]

AI and microphones. What could possibly go wrong!

 

[dominiongamma]

Hope this time they’re able to nail it. Siri’s overhaul is long overdue.

They wont, as long Siri is still on the phone

 

[airwalk331]

I hope they use this to make Siri smarter across devices. I live in a small apartment and one thing that’s always sucked is that, whenever I ask Siri to skip a song or something related to audio that’s playing it doesn’t know which device I’m asking- my iPad Pro will reply but audio is coming from my iPhone and vice versa. Shouldn’t they know which device I’m talking to if they’re all near each other and in the same WiFi?

I should at least be able to say “Siri, do this on my iPad”.

It’s so frustrating!

 

[iPay]

What does ASP stand for? I looked it up but could not find anything on what ASP is in the context of microphones.

Given the context, this could be Average Selling Price/Point. Or just A Superior Product

 

[iPay]

I hope they use this to make Siri smarter access devices. I live in a small apartment and one thing that’s always sucked is that, whenever I ask Siri to skip a song or something related to audio that’s playing it doesn’t know which device I’m asking- my iPad Pro will reply but audio is coming from my iPhone and vice versa. Shouldn’t they know which device I’m talking to if they’re all near each other and in the same WiFi?

I should at least be able to say “Siri, do this on my iPad”.

It’s so frustrating!

- Hey Siri, go uninstall yourself!
- I'm sorry Dave, I'm afraid I can't do that

 

[Jarman74]

Apple needs to seriously step up its AI game as the competition is making groundbreaking innovations literally every month. Just yesterday Google's Gemini was made available and it's nothing short of mind-blowing:

 

[displayblock]

I think the bigger part of the problem is what happens _after_ your input is processed.

The accuracy of the input processing at least in my case is decent most of times (although admittedly I don't often find myself in noisy environments).

Me: Set the heat to 68.

Siri: Sorry, I can’t help with that.

Me: Set the thermostat to 68.

Siri: Ok, heating to 68.

 

[philipmv]

Siri’s been trash since launch, but they’re waiting until generative AI to upgrade the mic to improve the experience? Why not sooner?

iPhones and most smartphones use MEMS technology for the mics. Apple better come up with something compelling like a unique chip invention and new mic technology rather than just say it’s “2x or 5x the MEMS than last year’s iPhone!”

 

[antiprotest]

Keyboard dictation has always heard me with over 90% accuracy, and recently close to 100%.

So I know Siri can hear me exactly right since iPhone 4. That has never been the problem.

The problem is that Siri hears me, but turns the words into something else, or doesn't do what it hears me say.

Improving the hardware will not fix the problem. That's like the cliche of blaming the racket when you lose a tennis game.

"HERE IS WHAT I FOUND ON THE WEB!!!"

 

[Woochoo]

But in typical Apple fashion, they will invent some hardware improvement, so that they can link the all new Siri exclusively to the iPhone 16 series. Smart.

That's what will probably happen, and call it Siri 2.0 or some bs like that. I'm still hoping they just improve the Siri backend using state of the art AI to do tasks not the 2012 tech it has. Right now the Homepod it's pretty useless beyond easy stuff like setting a timer (and even then it still manages to miss occasionally).

 

[Lakersfan74]

Told ya’ll you shoulda waited for the 16 Pro like me! 😎

The 17 is where things start to get real.

 

[jz0309]

so the microphones need to be improved for Siri?? They were good enough for humans in voice and video calls?
hmmm

 

[Born Again]

Well this is exciting !

So it was the mics the entire time? /s

 

[Born Again]

Looks like another sign that advanced Siri will be limited to the 16 lineup. It should be quite an upgrade from the 15 lineup, especially the 16 Pro with advanced Siri, huge camera upgrades, bigger display, minor redesign, stacked battery tech, improved thermals, 5G Advanced and more.

It’s going to be every iteration of AI Siri limited to the generation of the iPhone.

Quote me in two years.

 

[terrapinjess]

Maybe they need to work on more: just this morning I asked Siri “Siri is it going to rain today.”
The reply was “OK”
Tried again from Apple Watch using the raise to speak thing: same reply “Ok”
Tried again. Same reply.
What it was doing was turning on the rain Background Sounds feature on iPhone. Soooo stupid…

Siri never gets better. It works great for adding things to my grocery list reminder list, saying “Siri take me home” when I need to go home with GPS, and turning lights on and off via the Home app but that’s about it.

 

[t0rqx]

Does this actually says that all microphones BEFORE iPhone 16 were low cheap quality and therefore Siri always mistakes commands?

These mics are bought for 0.015 cents and sold to use for 30 dollars.

 

[sulpfiction]

Apple plans a significant upgrade to the iPhone 16 microphone to improve the new AI-enhanced Siri experience, according to Apple analyst Ming-Chi Kuo.

Writing in his latest Medium post, Kuo says that "strengthening Siri's hardware and software features and specifications is the key to promoting AI-generated content," adding that Apple's generative AI ambitions and integration of large-language models (LLMs) into Siri will heavily rely on improved voice input processing.

To that end, Apple is preparing a major microphone upgrade for the iPhone 16, with better signal-to-noise ratio a key specification that will "improve the Siri experience significantly," says Kuo. The new microphone will also have better water resistance.

The upgrade corroborates other reports suggesting Apple plans to make enhanced Siri features a key selling point of the iPhone 16. New Siri features powered by LLMs are expected in iOS 18, and Kuo's report notes that Apple reorganized its Siri team in the third quarter of this year to integrate generative AI and LLMs. However, Kuo's predictions also add weight to rumors that additional on-device AI features could remain exclusive to the iPhone 16 models.

According to the analyst's latest survey, AAC and Goertek are the microphone suppliers for the iPhone 16, and will benefit equally from the specification upgrade. "The ASP of microphones for each iPhone 16 will be at least 100–150% higher than that of the iPhone 15," says Kuo. "As a result, AAC's and Goertek's revenues and earnings are expected to benefit significantly from this upgrade."

Article Link: Kuo: Apple Upgrading iPhone 16 Microphone to Boost Siri AI Experience

Considering I just drive 40 mins with Siri telling me “I can’t answer that while you’re in the car” when I asked for specific music through CarPlay, I’d say the microphone is the least of Siri’s issues.
It’s always baffled me how Alexa is leaps and bounds more fluid, accurate and a much better experience overall. A complete overhaul is about 9 years overdue.

 

[QuarterSwede]

Have you all tried Siri recently?

I was surprised that it actually nailed some pretty tough questions. One was about how a new type of motor worked and another was the history of horse racing. It gave comprehensive answers each time. This was while driving down the road in CarPlay. It didn’t once say it couldn’t help or that I had to wait to see it on the iPhone. It ends by saying where it found its source, “from Wikipedia.”

Try it if it’s been a while. It’s actually pretty competitive now.

This was using an iPhone 12 Pro Max on iOS 17.1.2 wirelessly Carplaying to a 2024 Mazda CX-90 PHEV and in a T-Mobile 5G area (on Mint mobile).

 

[stevemiller]

I think the bigger part of the problem is what happens _after_ your input is processed.

The accuracy of the input processing at least in my case is decent most of times (although admittedly I don't often find myself in noisy environments).

agree. siri fails constantly, but the transcription of what it heard was always correct, meaning it wasn't an issue with the mic.

but i can't wait for apple to attempt* fixing basic siri bugs and paywall it behind requiring brand new hardware. "sorry only an A18 pro can reliably turn your lights on and off."

*attempt because it'll probably still be broken. autocorrect has only gotten worse for me since ios 17's "improvements." i recently texted someone 'Parking is free' and it autocorrected to 'Peking is free" because THAT is the more likely thing someone would text.

 

[ApAx]

I hope they use this to make Siri smarter across devices. I live in a small apartment and one thing that’s always sucked is that, whenever I ask Siri to skip a song or something related to audio that’s playing it doesn’t know which device I’m asking- my iPad Pro will reply but audio is coming from my iPhone and vice versa. Shouldn’t they know which device I’m talking to if they’re all near each other and in the same WiFi?

I should at least be able to say “Siri, do this on my iPad”.

It’s so frustrating!

I have submitted this feedback to Apple many times over the years. When I use "Hey Siri" or more recently just "Siri" voice command, instead of iPhone mere inches away, HomePod on the other side of the house tries to process the request and I have no idea what it said.

 

[wigby]

JFC Apple its not the microphone that needs fixing... 🙄
(That said, better hardware is always a plus!)

Apple isn't saying this. Ming Chi Kuo is saying this because the only leads he has concerning Apple rumors is supply chain. He has zero knowledge of AI or Apple's plans.