- Apple is expected to launch an AI-powered version of Siri at WWDC today
- That could enable new features on the Apple TV 4K and HomePod mini
- Other Apple products have been postponed due to Siri’s long delay
Apple’s long-overdue Siri upgrade — which should see it level up with new artificial intelligence (AI) powers — is set to be unveiled at the company’s Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) today. Not only could that give Siri a much-needed shot in the arm, it might also bring new features to a bunch of hardware products that have had to sit on the sidelines until Siri is ready.
That includes the Apple TV 4K and the HomePod mini, two devices that haven’t seen meaningful changes for years now. And I’m excited to see what new powers could be unlocked once they’re imbued with Apple Intelligence.
Bloomberg journalist Mark Gurman — who broke the news that these devices have been held up while Apple finalizes its AI efforts — cautions that we shouldn’t expect much aside from new chips that are compatible with Apple Intelligence. But to me, that feels a little beside the point — the Apple Intelligence upgrades alone could be worth the wait.
That’s because the new version of Siri is expected to better understand your personal context and work within other apps running on your devices. For the HomePod mini, I’m hoping that might mean learning your listening habits and picking out more personalized selections on request.
And if you’re able to better control apps running on the Apple TV 4K using Siri and your voice, that might let you bypass the Siri Remote, which is still frustrating many years after it launched. Although Gurman did note that the remote might itself be “refreshed in some form,” he didn’t share what that would look like.
Further delays
Aside from new powers coming to the HomePod mini and Apple TV 4K, other products could get a dose of Siri medicine in the future, Gurman reports in his latest Power On newsletter. Yet he also adds that many of these products are still years away from arriving.
That includes a tabletop robot, which has been pushed back from 2026 or 2027 to 2028, and a smart home display that has seen its release date slip from the original 2024 target to late 2026 “at the earliest.” And Apple’s smart glasses have also been delayed from early 2027 to later in the year, Gurman claims. Despite the hardware being close to launch, these products have all been rescheduled because they rely on the new Siri software, Gurman explains.
So while the Siri upgrade coming to WWDC later today could finally lift the limitation that has delayed updates to the Apple TV 4K and the HomePod mini, Apple’s AI holdup still appears to be having a negative effect on some as-yet-unreleased devices hidden in its secret labs.
Still, the silver lining is undoubtedly what Siri could enable for existing Apple products — and we’re about to see exactly what the company has planned. While we might not get big improvements to the hardware of the Apple TV 4K and the HomePod mini, the software upgrade alone could be worth the wait.
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alexblake.techradar@gmail.com (Alex Blake)
