Apple Confirms: Next-Gen Siri Delayed for a Year! What to Expect?

After months of silence and swirling rumors, Apple has finally come clean! The advanced features of Siri, expected to be powered by Apple Intelligence, won’t be ready until 2026. According to Mark Gurman from Bloomberg, an internal release target has indeed been set for next spring, likely through iOS 26.4, expected in March or April.

Initial Release Scheduled for iOS 18.4, Then Delayed

During the WWDC 2024, Apple had announced, almost with great fanfare, a major overhaul of Siri through Apple Intelligence. The announcement promised more contextual integration, personal data consideration, and enhanced understanding of on-screen content. This announcement had generated significant anticipation, particularly among iPhone 16 buyers, who were captivated by the promise of a reinvented intelligent assistant.

Originally, the rollout was scheduled for iOS 18.4, which meant it would be available in the first half of 2025. However, behind the scenes, things took a turn for the worse. The testing did not meet Apple’s high standards: there were too many bugs, an unstable hybrid engine, and an unacceptably high failure rate. Consequently, Apple decided to overhaul the project with a more robust architecture, pushing the schedule back by a year.

A Quiet Launch… or Total Silence?

At WWDC 2025, Apple remained tight-lipped about the future of Siri. During post-keynote interviews, Craig Federighi and Greg Joswiak confirmed that the personalized features of Siri would not be ready until the following year, without divulging further details. Apple chose to focus on features already integrated into the first beta of iOS 26, leaving the Siri enhancements out of the spotlight. They even carefully avoided mentioning Siri by name.

Mark Gurman, however, suggests that if internal testing progresses well in the coming weeks, Apple might preview the new Siri features during the unveiling of the iPhone 17, expected in the fall. This could be a way to bring some attention back to a project that has long been overshadowed.

A Risky Wait for Apple

The delay is not without consequences. Several class-action lawsuits have already been filed in the United States by customers who purchased an iPhone 16 expecting to quickly benefit from the new capabilities of Siri. Additionally, there is growing criticism about the gap between Apple’s announcements and the actual software capabilities, a complaint that has become increasingly common against Apple in recent years.

Expected Features of the New Siri

The boosted features of Siri with Apple Intelligence are expected to include:
• A finer contextual understanding, based on your habits and history,
• Consideration of on-screen content, to interact intelligently with open apps,
• Further integration with the Apple ecosystem, including third-party apps through the new LLM APIs.

Siri Intelligent remains one of Cupertino’s major projects, but patience will be required. The first realistic opportunity appears to be March or April 2026, via iOS 26.4. Until then, the company continues to gradually integrate Apple Intelligence into its apps, while working to elevate Siri to meet its initial ambitious goals. This time, the promised quality must truly meet user expectations to satisfy unhappy customers!