Siri AI in iOS 27: Features, requirements and how it works

The biggest change in iOS 27 is Apple’s total overhaul of Siri, with ‌Siri‌ transforming into ‌Siri‌ AI. Apple delivered on features originally promised at WWDC 2024 and added new features that make ‌Siri‌ a ​​viable competitor to chatbots like Claude and ChatGPT.

‌Siri‌ AI is available in the ‌iOS 27‌ beta, but everyone will have access to it this fall. Below, we go over everything you can expect from ‌Siri‌.

Siri AI

The ‌Siri‌ AI is more knowledgeable, more capable and, unlike other chatbots, capable of mining your personal data in apps like Mail, Messages and Photos. Apple says ‌Siri‌ has understanding and reasoning that wasn’t available before, with four main improvements that change how ‌Siri‌ works.

All the different functions of ‌Siri‌ come together to allow ‌Siri‌ to do much more than before. You can have full conversations with ‌Siri‌ and include multiple tasks in a single request.

Understanding personal context

Apple has overhauled its search index and ‌Siri‌ has access to emails, text messages, files, photos, notes and much more. ‌Siri‌ can find content in your apps, but it also understands that content. You can ask ‌Siri‌ to bring up photos, display information from emails or text messages, or search for files, and the behind-the-scenes Apple Intelligence Semantic Index finds what you need.

• What was that movie my brother told me to watch last week?
• Can you give me directions to this place where I was supposed to meet Eric tomorrow?
• What video games did John recommend to me last year?
• Find images with pancakes of 2024
• What was the name of the restaurant I ate at in February?
• What is the confirmation number for my next flight?
• What should I do tomorrow?
• Show me my photos from last weekend’s music festival
• What is the door code that Sarah texted me?
• Find the lease my landlord emailed me last month
• Who did I have lunch with two Tuesdays ago?

Knowledge of the whole world

Apple can search the web for up-to-date information to answer questions about anything, just like other chatbots. ‌Siri‌ can scan documents and get information from the web for additional context, help develop recipes, prepare for parties, help with homework, give gardening tips, assist with DIY projects and much more.

• When is the Suki Waterhouse show in SF?
• How can I get tickets?
• I’m having a birthday party, can you find me some good cake recipes?
• What is the difference between pine warblers and goldfinches?
• How do the Hurricanes score?
• What are the opening hours of the nearest Ace Hardware?
• What to replace buttermilk with?
• What is a 15% tip on $84?
• Help me plan a 5 day trip to Lisbon

Screen Awareness

‌Siri‌ knows what’s on your screen and can answer questions about it. ‌Siri‌ can know what you’re looking at, read text and analyze images.

‌Siri‌ can tell you where a photo was taken if there’s anything recognizable in it, and you can ask questions about any app you’re in without having to provide details.

• Where was this photo taken?
• Summarize this
• Can you give me some directions here?
• What are the best native plant options for a shady spot near me?
• Does this document look correct?
• What is this?
• Translate this menu
• Explain what this graph shows

Application actions

App actions allow ‌Siri‌ to use app tools to respond to requests. ‌Siri‌ may use certain apps on your behalf, including Apple apps and third-party apps that have implemented support for app actions.

• Write a quick response to this email
• Send all today’s photos to Eric
• Add a meeting Tuesday at 3 p.m. with the neighbor to my calendar
• Add these photos to the cat’s album
• Give me directions to the post office, but add a coffee stop first
• Move my meeting from 2 p.m. to Thursday

Siri Design

On iPhone, a new Search and Ask ‌Siri‌ interface replaces the old Spotlight search option and is available on Dynamic Island. Swiping down from the middle of the iPhone screen brings up Search or Ask, where you can type or ask a question or request to ‌Siri‌.

An animation appears while ‌Siri‌ thinks, then the ‌Siri‌ bubble expands into a short response. If you swipe down on an answer, a text bar appears where you can provide clarification or ask another question. A “+” button allows you to add images or documents to the conversation.

Some answers use rich information sheets taken from applications. If you ask ‌Siri‌ about the weather, you will see the current weather forecast. If you ask about upcoming calendar events, you’ll see them listed in Calendar app format.

You can also access ‌Siri‌ by pressing the side button or using the wake phrases “‌Siri‌” and “Hey ‌Siri‌”.

System-wide context

‌Siri‌ works in any app. You can select text or images, then ask ‌Siri‌ what the selection is. If you see an image in Safari that you want to know more about, you can long-press it to select it, then ask ‌Siri‌ what you want about it.

Siri app

There is a dedicated ‌Siri‌ app where you can start new conversations or review past conversations you had with ‌Siri‌.

The app has a card-style interface with details of your most recent conversations across all your devices. You can also use the search button to find conversations, and there is a pinning option for conversations you frequently revisit.

Write with Siri

In ‌iOS 27‌, you can write with ‌Siri‌ anywhere you type with system-wide Write with ‌Siri‌ functionality. ‌Siri‌ can write documents from scratch, and in Mail and Messages it can use the same writing style you usually use.

‌Siri‌ can give you feedback on your writing if you select your text and ask ‌Siri‌ how it sounds, and when you type in apps, automatic proofreading for spelling and grammar mistakes is performed. ‌Siri‌ can also edit, and you simply describe the change you want to make to something you’ve written, such as changing the tone to be more professional.

• Make this email more formal
• Turn those bullet points into a paragraph
• Shorten this to three sentences
• Write a thank you note for a gift
• Rewrite this to be more user friendly
• What do you think of this presentation?
• How can I improve this email?

Apple’s AI models

The Apple Foundation templates used for ‌Siri‌ and other ‌Apple Intelligence‌ features in ‌iOS 27‌ are the result of Apple’s collaboration with Google. Apple used the technologies behind the Gemini AI models to develop the next generation of Apple Foundation models.

Apple’s AI models are integrated into iOS and coordinated with a system orchestrator capable of using the Spotlight index and app toolkit.

The Spotlight Index surfaces data from any app that integrates with it, such as Mail, Calendar, and Messages. The application toolbox identifies application tools that might be useful in responding to a request.

Siri voice

Apple is offering a more powerful built-in model for the iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone Air, allowing for a customizable ‌Siri‌ voice. Apple says its built-in model can understand and generate speech, as well as text and images. You can change the expressiveness and rhythm when customizing ‌Siri‌’s voice.

The on-device model also improves system-wide dictation accuracy through better natural language understanding. Dictation better captures what you say and makes fewer spelling, punctuation, and capitalization errors.

Confidentiality

Apple’s ‌Siri‌ features run on-device and on cloud servers using Private Cloud Compute. The data is not accessible to Apple or third parties.

Private Cloud Compute servers have always been Apple servers in Apple data centers, but Apple is extending Private Cloud Compute to run “Apple Intelligence” workloads on Google Cloud using NVIDIA hardware.

Cross-platform availability

‌Siri‌ AI is available in ‌iOS 27‌, iPadOS 27, macOS Golden Gate, visionOS 27, and watchOS 27, so you can initiate a ‌Siri‌ request on one device and revisit it on another device.

‌Siri‌ conversations sync across devices and the ‌Siri‌ app is available on most Apple software platforms.

‌Siri‌ AI features are also available when using CarPlay and AirPods.

Device Requirements

‌Siri‌ AI requires a device that supports ‌Apple Intelligence‌, including iPhone 15 Pro and later.

‌Siri‌ AI will not be available in the European Union at launch on iPhone or iPad, but it will be available on Mac. It will not be available in China.

Language support

‌Siri‌ AI works in English (Australia, Canada, Ireland, India, New Zealand, South Africa, United Kingdom, United States) and will expand to more languages ​​in the future.