Apple opens its biggest Siri AI overhaul to the public

Apple has launched the public beta of iOS 27, opening up its redesigned Siri AI assistant to everyday users for the first time, ahead of the broader launch expected later this fall. This marks the first time Apple has made its AI-powered Siri widely available beyond developers. With some 2.5 billion active devices worldwide, even if only a fraction of users install the beta, it will still amount to the largest test yet of Apple’s redesigned assistant.

The upgraded Siri can access information stored on a user’s device, respond to whatever is on the screen, and ground its answers in broader world knowledge. It runs on Apple Intelligence, Apple’s personal-intelligence system, including new Foundation Models that operate on-device and draw on Private Cloud Compute — Apple’s cloud-based processing system, built so that users’ personal data isn’t stored or accessible to Apple — for heavier tasks.

To build those Foundation Models, Apple worked with Google, distilling its Gemini model. Distillation is a process that transfers knowledge from a larger model into a smaller, more efficient one, and Apple used it to create models tailored specifically for Apple Silicon, its own chip lineup, rather than simply rebranding Google’s technology.

The full public launch of iOS 27 is still expected in September, but this beta already gives Apple its largest real-world test yet of an assistant meant to compete with rival chatbots such as ChatGPT and Claude. Early developer testing wasn’t error-free: Siri occasionally stumbled on basic requests, including one instance where a search for news about Iran instead pulled up a contact by that name. Anyone who needs their device to run without errors may want to hold off and wait for the September release rather than install the beta now.

Why it matters

This public beta marks Apple’s first major step in bringing its AI ecosystem to users worldwide, positioning Siri as its direct answer to established chatbots like ChatGPT and Gemini.