Apple’s AI-Powered Siri Renewal Delayed Once More

Apple's Digital Assistant Siri: Awaiting a Significant Evolution

For years, Apple's AI-powered virtual assistant Siri has served as a convenient voice-activated tool integrated into iPhones and other Apple devices. However, as artificial intelligence continues to advance rapidly, many users and tech enthusiasts have been eagerly anticipating a comprehensive overhaul that would bring Siri into the modern AI era. Recent reports suggest that this transformation is on the horizon, albeit with a notable delay.

According to Mark Gurman from Bloomberg, the redesigned, AI-enhanced version of Siri is expected to debut with the upcoming iOS 26.4 update, which is projected to be released around March 2026 at the earliest.

Interestingly, this ambitious new version of Siri was initially slated to arrive much sooner, with plans for iOS 18. However, unforeseen technical challenges and development setbacks have caused Apple to postpone these improvements. Early predictions indicated that users might experience the upgraded Siri within 2025, but based on Apple's current update schedule, the large-scale overhaul has now been deferred to the iOS 26.4 release.

The Vision for the New Siri Experience

Apple envisions the new Siri as more natural, context-aware, and personalized. During the WWDC 2024 announcement, Apple highlighted several key enhancements: Siri will now better interpret incomplete or ambiguous user commands, maintain context across multiple requests within a single conversation, and effortlessly switch between voice commands and text input. These features aim to transform Siri from a simple voice response system into a highly interactive and adaptive digital assistant.

The evolution of Siri falls under the broader Apple Intelligence initiative, which aspires to enable Siri to handle a wider array of tasks, both within Apple’s native applications and through third-party integrations. For example, users could say, “Open the article about cicadas from my reading list”, and Siri would accurately locate and open the relevant content. Similarly, commands like, “Send the barbecue photos from Saturday to Pelin”, will become more natural and intuitive.

Official Statements and Development Timeline

Apple executives Craig Federighi and Greg Joswiak have publicly acknowledged that implementing these significant AI enhancements will require time. During an interview at WWDC 2025, they emphasized that delivering these advanced features in a timely manner is a gradual process, and thus, users should expect the full capabilities to be available only in 2026.

Apple's official stance confirms that the development of these features remains ongoing. For now, users can observe a visual refresh of Siri, which includes a glowing light animation at the bottom of the screen—an aesthetic update that hints at the more profound changes to come.

Ultimately, the real transformation will occur behind the scenes, where the underlying AI systems will be significantly upgraded to support these more sophisticated functionalities. This evolution aims to position Siri as a truly intelligent, context-aware assistant capable of understanding and responding to complex requests with human-like nuance.