14 DAY TRIAL // Apple is reportedly planning several big announcements at this year’s WWDC developer conference, and Siri could be one of the highlights this year.
The virtual assistant, which has barely received major updates lately, is likely to get a new voice, as well as a bunch of new features. Asking Siri on an iPhone, iPad, or macOS about what to expect at WWDC this year returns the following response: “La la la, Siri is getting a brand new voice.”
While Microsoft, Google, and Amazon invested quite aggressively in their own virtual assistants, Apple has barely shipped any major updates, leaving Siri way behind the competition.
Microsoft itself has tried to make Cortana available on all platforms, especially after the demise of Windows 10 Mobile, and the digital assistant can now be installed even on iPhones.
But with this upcoming update, Apple could finally give Siri the boost it needed to come in line with its rivals, though for the time being, no specifics are known.
More affordable smart speaker
At the same time, it’s believed that this year Apple could use its developer conference to take the wraps off a new smart speaker. As we reported yesterday, this new smart speaker would be a low-cost model specifically supposed to help boost Apple’s market share in this particular side of the tech market.
The plan appears to be launching the new speaker under the Beats brand in an effort to avoid this model from stealing potential customers from the HomePod. Sales of the HomePod have so far been below estimates, and Apple reportedly sold only 600,000 units, so the more affordable configuration should help the company grow bigger in this industry.
WWDC opens its doors on June 4, and in addition to the announcements mentioned above, the company is also expected to showcase updates coming to iPhone and iPad with the release of iOS 12.