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We finally have evidence that iOS 12 will bring several Siri improvements

Published May 22nd, 2018 7:45AM EDT
iOS 12 Features Siri
Image: Zach Epstein, BGR

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Apple’s Siri may have been the first voice assistant worth paying attention to, but she’s far from being the best. In fact, rivals from Amazon and Google are not only more popular with fans thanks to the rise of smart speakers business, but also more useful.

All that is about to change come iOS 12… according to Siri.

Apple has consistently improved Siri over the years, but the company wasn’t able to maintain its lead on competitors. Amazon Alexa and Google Assistant are now the most popular home assistants, as Apple has just entered the business. What’s worse is that Apple chose to sell the HomePod as a high-end speaker first, rather than a smart speaker, so the device is hardly an Amazon Echo or Google Home competitor.

But come early June, when Apple is set to unveil its new software innovations, Siri might get a few significant improvements. The news comes straight from Siri, which is now teasing the new features if you ask it the right way.

“Tell me about WWDC” is one way to trigger Siri’s teasers. When CNBC issued the command, Siri’s replay was the following:

I don’t want to brag, but I’m getting a lot smarter. It must be all that late night studying I’ve been doing…

According to The Apple Post, Siri is also getting a new voice:

La la la, Siri is getting a brand new voice!

Finally, Siri is also teasing that new HomePod hardware might be in store:

I’m gonna have a shiny new home! Well, not really shine, more meshy and matte…

It’s certainly not surprising to hear that Siri is getting smarter. After all, so are all the other assistants, and we just saw new Cortana and Alexa features at Microsoft’s Build, while Google surprised us with the creepy Duplex functionality. Making Siri sound more human is also understandable — again, Google’s Duplex shows that’s the direction voice assistants are heading to. 

Finally, Siri’s new home might be that cheaper HomePod speaker recent rumors have mentioned.

Apple’s main WWDC 2018 keynote is scheduled for June 4th, which is where all these new Siri features will be unveiled.

Chris Smith Senior Writer

Chris Smith has been covering consumer electronics ever since the iPhone revolutionized the industry in 2008. When he’s not writing about the most recent tech news for BGR, he brings his entertainment expertise to Marvel’s Cinematic Universe and other blockbuster franchises.

Outside of work, you’ll catch him streaming almost every new movie and TV show release as soon as it's available.