When Apple released iOS 18 last year, it stated that some of the Apple Intelligence features would be made available to users in 2025. The sum of features included the new Siri experience with Apple Intelligence, and it appears that the company is now delaying them until next year, which only goes on to show how behind the company is in generative AI development.
It will take Apple longer than anticipated to release the highly anticipated Apple Intelligence Siri features, now delayed until next year
An Apple spokesperson states in an interview with Daring Fireball that it will take the company even longer to release the highly anticipated personalized Siri experience. It was initially believed that Apple would offer the new Siri functionality with the release of iOS 18.4, and soon before the beta of the build was released to developers, we got to know that the company had delayed the feature until iOS 18.5. While we were anticipating the feature to arrive in May of this year, the latest information claims that it 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."
If you are unfamiliar with the functionality, the personalized Siri experience will allow the digital assistant to understand personal context, have on-screen awareness, and feature deeper in-app integration. It is one of the biggest upgrades Siri will receive, enabling it to better compete against the likes of ChatGPT and Google Assistant. At this stage, Apple is running far behind in the race to offer premium AI features, as companies like Samsung and Google have excelled quite a bit. The company has also removed its ad from YouTube associated with the feature.
Apple is in an AI crisis, especially in the Siri division, and it has been working with developers and engineers to ready the new functionality for a while. Apple's delays in rolling out AI features will reflect on the company's credibility and might not sit well with investors either. Apart from the interview, a new report published by Reuters also suggests that the highly anticipated Siri experience with Apple Intelligence has been delayed until 2026.
Apple's delay could also reflect on the forthcoming iOS 19 features, which would likely be delayed as well, and the cycle will continue until the company does something about it. Do you think Apple will manage to release the Apple Intelligence Siri this year before it seeds the first beta of iOS 19 to developers at the WWDC event?
