Still no AI-powered, ‘more personalized’ Siri from Apple at WWDC 25

During the recent Worldwide Developer Conference (WWDC 25), Apple unveiled a variety of updates across its operating systems, services, and software. Among the highlights was a fresh aesthetic referred to as 'Liquid Glass' and a revamped naming scheme. However, the tech giant remained notably silent on one of the most eagerly awaited developments: the introduction of a more personalized, AI-driven Siri. Craig Federighi, Apple’s Senior Vice President of Software Engineering, briefly addressed the Siri enhancements during his keynote speech. He stated, "As we’ve shared, we’re continuing our work to deliver the features that make Siri even more personal. This work needed more time to reach our high-quality bar, and we look forward to sharing more about it in the coming year." This vague timeline suggests that updates regarding Siri may not arrive until 2026, a considerable delay in the fast-paced realm of artificial intelligence, where advancements occur rapidly. Originally revealed at WWDC 24, the new Siri was expected to integrate AI innovations to enhance its functionality across iPhones and other Apple devices. Apple had positioned the update as a significant milestone, claiming that the virtual assistant would better grasp users' 'personal context'—including relationships, communications, and daily routines. Furthermore, it was anticipated that Siri would be able to perform actions seamlessly within and across various apps. Reports circulated indicating that while a version of the upgraded Siri was operational, it struggled with consistency, functioning correctly only two-thirds of the time. Consequently, Apple decided to delay the launch, announcing in March that the rollout would take longer than initially thought. This decision was compounded by a management shake-up, with Mike Rockwell, previously involved with the Vision Pro project, taking over from John Giannandrea, the former SVP of Machine Learning and AI Strategy. These changes hinted at Apple's intention to realign its AI developments, raising concerns about its competitive standing against rivals such as OpenAI and Google. To address these issues, Apple has partnered with OpenAI, allowing Siri to direct unanswered queries to ChatGPT for improved responses. In conjunction with the forthcoming iOS 26 release, Apple has also enhanced its AI image generation tool, Image Playground, to utilize ChatGPT. At WWDC 2025, Apple reiterated its commitment to AI innovation, announcing plans for developer access to on-device foundation models, live translation features, enhancements to Genmoji, Visual Intelligence advancements, and even an AI 'Workout Buddy' for the Apple Watch. They also introduced an updated, AI-infused version of the Shortcuts app, aimed at enhancing user scripting and automation capabilities.