Apple is preparing to pull the curtain back on a radically upgraded Siri that trades canned replies for full‑blown conversational AI, with the first wave of features expected as soon as next month. The assistant will be “supercharged” by large language models, turning what has long been a rigid voice interface into something closer to a chatbot that can understand context, follow up questions, and orchestrate complex tasks across devices. Behind that shift is a strategic bet on external AI partners and a multi‑stage rollout that stretches across 2026.
The stakes are unusually high: this is not just another iOS tweak, but the moment Apple tries to prove it can match or surpass the likes of ChatGPT while keeping its privacy‑first reputation intact. If the launch lands as planned, Siri could move from punchline to flagship feature almost overnight, reshaping how hundreds of millions of people use their iPhones, Macs, and other Apple hardware.
What Apple’s Gemini‑powered Siri will actually change
The core upgrade is that Siri will no longer rely primarily on Apple’s older, rules‑based systems, but instead lean on Google’s Gemini family of models for natural language understanding and generation. Reports describe Apple’s revamped Siri as a Gemini‑backed assistant that can handle richer, chat‑style conversations, with Apple’s revamped Siri expected to debut in February. That aligns with separate reporting that Apple will reportedly unveil its Gemini‑powered Siri assistant in February, confirming that Apple will reportedly lean on Gemini for the first public release. A key part of the strategy is a multi‑year partnership between Apple and Google, under which Google’s Gemini AI models will help power the next generation of Siri and upcoming Apple Intelligence features, with Apple, Google, Gemini, all tied together in a single stack.
Functionally, that means Siri should be able to parse more complex, multi‑step requests, remember context within a conversation, and generate more natural responses, rather than the clipped phrases users are used to. Apple is preparing what some reports call the most significant upgrade to Siri since launch, with two major releases across 2026 that effectively create a Siri 2.0 and a Siri 3.0, as Apple is preparing to fold advanced models into everyday features. Earlier planning documents had Apple initially targeting iOS 18.4 for personalized Siri features, but those Apple Intelligence capabilities were delayed to spring 2026 to fix the architecture and deepen app integration, with Apple initially planned to launch in 18.4 before pushing back. Now, the Gemini‑powered layer is set to arrive first, with more personalized and app‑aware behavior following later in the year.
A staggered rollout, from February preview to summer “chatbot Siri”
Apple’s timeline is deliberately phased, reflecting both technical complexity and the company’s caution around shipping unfinished AI. Multiple reports point to a February unveiling of the revamped assistant, with one describing how Apple To Unveil to prioritize core assistant behavior over a full Safari AI overhaul. Another account says Apple’s updated Siri will arrive in February, while a more fully conversational “chatbot Siri” is planned for the summer, with Bloomberg, Apple, Siri all cited in that roadmap. On the software side, Siri’s major AI overhaul is expected to land with iOS 26.4, with code leaks pointing to that version as the trigger for the new experience and Siri’s major AI serving as a key milestone.
Beyond the initial launch, Apple is already signaling a second, larger wave of features tied to its annual developer conference. According to one report, Apple is planning to announce an even bigger Siri update at the Worldwide Developers Conference, with According, Gurman, Apple, all linked to that plan. Another analysis suggests that Siri 2.0 could finally reach iPhones next month, with the Gemini‑powered assistant due to gain even more abilities at WWDC this summer, as Jan, Apple, Gemini, frame it. That cadence mirrors earlier promises from WWDC 2024, when Apple said Siri would become a more intelligent assistant, but the full vision took nearly two years to materialize, with When Apple, Siri, first outlining the shift toward a cohesive vision of ambient computing.
Why Apple is betting on partners, and what comes after Gemini
Under the hood, Apple’s embrace of Gemini marks a sharp turn away from its historic preference for in‑house AI. One retrospective on Apple’s local search and AI efforts notes that Apple has decided to go with Gemini for the guts for Siri 2.0, with Apple, Gemini for describing how that choice followed internal shakeups after multiple false starts. Another analysis of Apple’s AI strategy suggests the company has even explored using other third‑party models such as Claude or ChatGPT for Siri, with one report stating that if Apple goes ahead with the switch, Siri could be powered by either Claude or ChatGPT as soon as next year, marking a first for Apple in leaning heavily on third‑party AI, as Apple, Siri, Claude makes clear. That experimentation underscores how quickly the AI landscape is moving, and how determined Apple is to avoid being locked into a single model provider if the technology shifts again.
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