In a series of interviews after Apple’s Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC 25), company executives addressed concerns regarding the delayed launch of a personalized, AI-powered Siri. They firmly denied allegations that demonstrations from the previous year were merely vaporware, emphasizing their commitment to the project despite its ongoing development. When pressed by The Wall Street Journal about why Apple had not yet delivered a functioning product, senior vice president of software engineering Craig Federighi refrained from admitting any setbacks in the competitive AI landscape. Instead, he characterized AI as a transformative technology that Apple views as a long-term endeavor, expected to influence both the industry and society for years to come.
Federighi remarked, “There’s no need to rush out with the wrong features and the wrong product just to be first.” He clarified that Apple showcased the new Siri at WWDC 24 to give the public insight into their vision for Apple Intelligence and its implications. The company developed two versions of the AI architecture for Siri; they demonstrated version 1, but as development advanced, it became clear that transitioning to version 2 was necessary to meet customer expectations. This version is anticipated to launch in 2026. Apple executives also rejected claims that their demonstrations at WWDC 24 lacked functional technology.
Federighi reassured the audience that the presented software was indeed operational and utilized a large language model for semantic search. Greg Joswiak, senior vice president of worldwide marketing, added that while some viewed the technology as “demoware,” Apple intended to release it sooner, only to recognize that the software’s error rate was “unacceptable.” Ultimately, Apple’s aim is not to create a chatbot to compete with others like ChatGPT. Instead, they want to embed intelligence across all operating systems, offering developers tools to tap into Apple’s foundational models to enhance the intelligence of their applications.