February 18, 2025 – According to a recent report by Mark Gurman from Bloomberg, the release of Apple’s updated Siri, part of the Apple Intelligence division, has been delayed until May of this year, along with the launch of iOS 18.5. Gurman previously stated that the reason for the postponement was due to “engineering challenges and software bugs” encountered by Apple.
The new Siri was officially unveiled at Apple’s Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) on June 11, 2024. Apple promised a more natural conversation experience with Siri in iOS 18, including the ability to understand context, eliminating the need to repeat information in subsequent requests. However, an exact release date for these features has remained elusive.
It is reported that the updated Siri will offer deeper integration with both first-party and third-party applications, allowing it to perceive what users are currently viewing on their screens and assist with in-app operations. During the WWDC, Apple demonstrated Siri’s new capability by editing a picture the user was viewing in the Photos app.
Nevertheless, the new Siri still has a “hardware threshold,” requiring at least an iPhone 15 Pro or iPhone 15 Pro Max to function. On the Mac side, users need a model equipped with an M1 chip or later, while for iPad, an iPad Pro or iPad Air with an M1 chip or better is necessary.
There have been rumors suggesting that Apple might introduce Chinese Apple Intelligence services in iOS 18.4. The first beta version of iOS 18.4 is expected to be released this week or next. Previous reports indicated that Apple confirmed the official release of iOS 18.4 in April of this year.
