Anticipated Siri Features Delayed: Implications for Apple Users
Do you recall the iPhone 16 advertisement featuring Bella Ramsey, where she asked her device to remind her of a past meeting’s attendee? Unfortunately, such functionality may only be available with the iPhone 17 release.
On Friday, Apple officially announced (as reported by Daring Fireball) that the much-anticipated upgrade to Siri—originally slated for launch in iOS 18.4 and then postponed to iOS 18.5—will not debut until sometime in the following year. With the Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) just around the corner, it appears that this enhanced version of Siri will now likely align with the launch of iOS 19 in a potential update set for 2026.
Key Features That Will Miss Their Launch Window
The primary functionalities facing delays comprise onscreen awareness, personal context integration, and app intents—three features that users have eagerly awaited as part of Apple’s latest push into artificial intelligence. The onscreen awareness feature would empower Siri to interpret what’s visible on your display, enabling commands such as “Add this individual to my contacts.” Meanwhile, personal context aims to allow Siri to leverage information from your texts and calendar events—just like in Ramsey’s ad—to deliver personalized assistance.
App Intents represents perhaps the most disappointing setback due to its potential impact on user experience. This feature would enable users to execute cross-app actions through voice commands via Siri—a long-requested capability. Imagine instructing Siri to fetch flight details from an external application and instantly share them with someone else—all through one simple command.
The Implications of This Delay
This news was subtly disclosed on a Friday after a week filled with other announcements—a move likely reflecting Apple’s challenge in keeping pace within the artificial intelligence arena. Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman indicated earlier this week that an upcoming “conversational” assistant intended as competition for ChatGPT and Gemini won’t arrive until at least 2027. Consequently, this delay suggests Apple might find itself trailing behind competitors like Google, Samsung, and OpenAI for several years ahead.
