Apple's smarter version of Siri that incorporates Apple Intelligence features could end up being delayed, reports Bloomberg's Mark Gurman. Apple is running into engineering problems and software bugs that could push back the launch of the new functionality.
Rumors suggested that Apple planned to introduce the new Siri features in iOS 18.4, but the first iOS 18.4 beta is expected as soon as next week, and it appears Siri won't be ready in time.
Apple has already promised that Apple Intelligence will be available in new languages in April, suggesting that's when the iOS 18.4 update will launch, so Apple has a limited amount of time to get Siri ready to go. Some features may now need to be postponed until May later, with Apple perhaps planning to introduce them in an iOS 18.5 update.
Apple has promised three Apple Intelligence features for Siri, including personal context to better understand and respond to requests, the ability to do more in and between apps, and on-screen awareness to respond to requests that involve content the user is looking at. Employees testing the new Siri features have reportedly said that they are not yet working consistently.
Major new features rarely come as late as May, because Apple typically transitions to working on the next-generation version of iOS in June after WWDC.
Gurman says that Apple could still debut the features in iOS 18.4, but turn them off by default as testing continues until iOS 18.5, and in that case, we'd still see the new functionality in iOS 18.4. We should be getting the first iOS 18.4 beta soon, though it is not likely that Siri will be in the initial beta given today's report.
