Siri AI Review: Your Intelligent and Supportive Companion

I quickly discovered that Siri AI’s concise replies don’t drag on indefinitely like many modern AI assistants, often sticking to a single paragraph. When I asked for a scenic beach hike to catch the sunrise near the Golden Gate Bridge, it promptly recommended a well-known trail in the Presidio neighborhood along with an option in the Marin Headlands. Siri highlighted key phrases in the textual response that accompanied the audible answer for easy scanning. Since I wanted more information before heading out, I swiped down on the text reply to get more details about each option.

Apple’s collaboration with Google is a significant factor in this Siri upgrade. Google’s Gemini now powers the voice assistant’s underlying model, Apple Intelligence. Siri’s output with this new model felt more aligned with my needs, rather than merely suggesting a couple of links for me to sift through. When I posed general questions, such as “What should I do today,” Siri reviewed my recent messages and brought up plans I discussed with friends but hadn’t finalized.

Another important feature of Siri AI is its hyper-personalization based on your device’s data, whether it resides in your photos or messages. It also allows for flexibility beyond Apple-exclusive services; when I asked Siri to compose a text, the voice assistant checked if I wanted to send it via Apple’s Messages or Meta’s Messenger service.

This AI search format necessitates that Siri index your phone, which involves scanning and cataloging its data for convenient reference. When I updated my iPhone to the developer beta for iOS 27, it took just over a week for the device to complete the indexing process.

At WWDC 2026, Apple consistently highlighted its privacy-focused approach to Siri AI. As part of the company’s Private Cloud Compute initiative, Apple asserts that it doesn’t retain data from users and only accesses it when you ask Siri a question. Similar to the previous version of Apple’s assistant, users who prefer not to use Siri AI can disable it in their settings.

I tested Siri AI on an iPhone 16 Pro Max, which will include many but not all of Siri AI’s features. Based on publicly available information, only the iPhone Air, iPhone 17 Pro, and the iPhone 17 Max will offer all the advanced features, such as more diverse voice options. For the rest of the lineup: Every iPhone 16 and iPhone 17 model will support the new Siri, while only the iPhone 15 Pro and Pro Max will be compatible. Older models will not support this voice assistant.

Siri, Let’s Take a Hike

Like any enthusiastic tourist, I began my morning with a visit to the Golden Gate Bridge, where numerous nearby hiking trails offer beautiful views. Since Siri AI is also integrated with the iPhone’s camera app, I decided to open it and capture a quick photo of the foggy path ahead to see how Siri would respond.

I didn’t ask Siri any specific questions; I simply showed it a snapshot of the scene in front of me, and the AI responded with a brief history of the Cypress Tree Tunnel at Point Reyes National Seashore. Siri accurately recognized the Monterey cypress trees. However, the tunnel it mentioned is an hour’s drive from my location, which could be confusing for someone unfamiliar with the area.

Despite this oversight, the more I interacted with Siri while exploring, the more impressed I became with its ability to help me rediscover images from past adventures hidden among the thousands of photos in my camera roll.