Apple plans to integrate third-party AI to revamp Siri

With Apple lagging behind in AI integration, the company could leverage OpenAI or Anthropic's technology to finally modernize Siri, its voice assistant.

Apple is exploring the possibility of using artificial intelligence models developed by OpenAI or Anthropic to power a new version of its Siri voice assistant, according to a report by Bloomberg News on Monday. This strategic shift would mark a notable break with Apple's long-standing policy of focusing on in-house solutions.

The announcement boosted the group's share price, which ended Monday's trading session up 2%, erasing some of its losses for the day.

Apple has reportedly begun preliminary discussions with the two AI companies, asking them to train versions of their language models (LLMs) that can run on Apple's cloud infrastructure for testing purposes, according to sources familiar with the matter. These discussions are still at an exploratory stage, and no final decision has been made.

In March, Apple announced that major improvements to Siri using artificial intelligence would be postponed until 2026, without specifying the reasons for the delay. According to Bloomberg, CEO Tim Cook has since reorganized the management teams responsible for AI, entrusting the leadership of the Siri project to Mike Rockwell after losing confidence in John Giannandrea, the group's former head of AI strategy.

At its annual Worldwide Developers Conference in early June, Apple emphasized modest but concrete advances, such as live translation during phone calls, rather than spectacular technological ambitions similar to those pursued by its competitors. Furthermore, the Siri update was never mentioned at the conference, and users are still waiting for a more specific date.

Craig Federighi, senior vice president of software engineering, announced that Apple would open up its own fundamental AI model to third-party developers. He also said that the code completion tools offered in the Apple development environment would include both those designed by Apple and those from OpenAI.

This potential partnership with external players would signal a significant shift in the group's strategy, which has long been committed to strict control over its technologies.