A Siri, powered by Apple Intelligence, is rumoured to debut in the spring of 2026
The long-promised smarter, more capable Siri is still stuck in limbo as Apple struggles to get it working right.
It’s been over a year since Apple previewed its ambitious overhaul of Siri, an assistant finally expected to be smart, context-aware, and capable of acting like it actually knows you. But fast forward to WWDC 2025, and that futuristic Siri is still missing in action. Despite all the flashy demos from 2024, reports now suggest the new version won’t arrive until spring 2026.
Apple initially aimed to launch the upgraded Siri with the iPhone in late 2024 before quietly shifting the target to early 2025. In March, the company placed the project on indefinite hold. Behind the scenes, reports suggest Apple’s engineers ran into a core problem, merging Siri’s old system with its new AI-powered framework caused bugs and failures in basic tasks.
The assistant reportedly broke a third of the time in testing, prompting an internal reshuffle. Apple's AI lead was removed from overseeing Siri, and the public-facing marketing campaign was pulled entirely.
Ogbonda Chivumnovu
The new Siri was pitched as a smarter, more helpful assistant, able to reference your messages, edit documents, and perform tasks inside apps without needing extra prompts. But none of that is here yet. Even with iOS 26 now official, those advanced Siri features remain on ice.
The only glimmer is an enhanced Spotlight search in macOS 26, which uses some of the same backend tech. It's not Siri, but it shows Apple is still inching forward.
This isn’t just about a late update. It’s about Apple keeping pace in an AI arms race. Google, OpenAI, and Microsoft are already rolling out intelligent assistants that feel light years ahead. Apple’s delay raises fair questions: Did it overpromise? Or is it being overly cautious?
The best-case scenario now points to a spring 2026 rollout with iOS 26.4. Apple might show a refreshed demo this autumn, but there’s no firm release window yet.
Until then, Siri remains stuck in the past, while Apple tries to build the future it previewed far too early.
Kelechi Edeh
