It’s been nearly two years since Apple promised a new and improved, AI-powered Siri, yet it looks like we’re still not getting the full, promised upgraded Siri just yet.
When Apple unveiled Apple Intelligence in 2024, the company painted a picture of a smarter, more conversational assistant that could understand context and pull information from your apps. Fast forward to 2026, and that vision still feels frustratingly out of reach.
Ogbonda Chivumnovu
According to a recent report from Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman, Apple has extended the launch date for the upgraded Siri.
In Mark's report, he says, "After planning to include the new capabilities in iOS 26.4 — an operating system update slated for March — Apple is now working to spread them out over future versions, according to people familiar with the matter. That would mean possibly postponing some features until at least iOS 26.5, due in May, and iOS 27, which comes out in September."
Gurman says the new Siri still struggles with processing complex or multi-step requests, sometimes misinterprets queries, and can be noticeably slow to respond.
"Testing uncovered fresh problems with the software, prompting the latest postponements, said the people, who asked not to be identified because the deliberations are private. Siri doesn’t always properly process queries or can take too long to handle requests,” he reported.
He added that there are also problems with Siri’s ability to interact reliably with apps using Apple’s “App Intents” framework, which is supposed to let users chain together actions like finding a photo, editing it, and sending it to a contact using a single command.
On top of that, Apple is reportedly pulling back, at least for now, on features that would allow Siri to scan more personal data, such as messages or emails, to answer highly contextual questions, likely due to performance and privacy concerns.
All of these, Gurman reports, point to a future where Apple ships only a partial version of the new Siri in iOS 26.4, adds more capabilities in iOS 26.5 around May, and saves the most ambitious features for iOS 27 in September. It’s a cautious approach, but also one that highlights how far behind Apple appears to be in the generative AI race.
That gap becomes more obvious when you look at competitors. Google’s Gemini and Amazon’s Alexa+ already offer more conversational experiences and better handling of complex questions, even if they’re far from perfect. Apple has confirmed it’s working with Google’s Gemini to power parts of its AI efforts, yet even with that partnership, the launch date still remains further.
For Apple users, the wait is getting tiring. Siri has long been one of the company’s weakest core features, and Apple clearly wants to avoid releasing an upgrade that feels half-baked. Still, with expectations set years ago, every new delay adds to the pressure.
Louis Eriakha
