Apple is finally gearing up to give Siri the brains it’s long been missing — and it might not be doing it alone this time.
According to insiders, Apple is in active talks with OpenAI and Anthropic to help train advanced language models that would run on Apple’s own cloud infrastructure. This move signals a major shift from the company’s usual “build it in-house” philosophy, showing that Apple is ready to plug into the wider AI ecosystem to stay competitive.
The urgency? Siri’s next-gen upgrade, dubbed “LLM Siri,” is behind schedule. After missing its expected March 2025 rollout, Apple quietly replaced AI chief John Giannandrea with Mike Rockwell (formerly of Vision Pro fame) to lead the charge. CEO Tim Cook reportedly made the decision after losing confidence in the direction Siri was heading.
Claude vs ChatGPT: Who Will Power Siri?
While Apple has tested models like OpenAI’s ChatGPT and Google’s Gemini, early signals suggest Anthropic’s Claude is currently leading the race when it comes to handling everyday voice queries. But it’s still early days, and Apple hasn’t made a final call on whether it will rely on external models for Siri’s future.
This possible partnership is part of a larger AI revamp at Apple. The company also looked into acquiring Perplexity AI — a fast-growing LLM startup — and is exploring ways to open its own AI infrastructure to third-party developers. Plus, Apple plans to integrate tools like OpenAI’s code generation into its developer suite.
Siri’s conspicuous absence from WWDC 2025 raised more questions than answers. While Apple announced features like real-time translation during phone calls, the lack of a major Siri overhaul hinted that the voice assistant still isn’t ready for prime time. Greg Joswiak, Apple’s marketing chief, even admitted internally that the current version didn’t meet their standards.
The Big Picture: Apple’s Hybrid AI Play
What’s clear is this — Apple is trying to catch up, and fast. Rather than reinvent the wheel, it may soon blend in-house innovation with top-tier AI from external players like OpenAI and Anthropic. If that strategy clicks, Siri could finally evolve from digital sidekick to something truly smart.
This could be Apple’s most important AI pivot yet — not just for Siri, but for how the company competes in a world increasingly shaped by generative intelligence.
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