Apple tears down old Siri, builds an AI assistant that knows your screen, your apps and your life

Apple on Monday placed artificial intelligence at the centre of its Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) 2026, unveiling Siri AI, a major overhaul of its virtual assistant that promises more natural conversations, personalised responses and the ability to understand what users are viewing on their screens.

The announcement forms part of Apple’s broader push to expand Apple Intelligence across its devices and software platforms. Alongside the redesigned Siri, the company introduced new parental control features, privacy-focused AI architecture and a range of upgrades coming to iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Watch and other Apple products in the next software cycle.

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Presenting the new capabilities at WWDC in Cupertino, Apple said Siri AI has been designed to understand personal context, draw information from across apps and access up-to-date web information to answer user queries more effectively.

The assistant can surface relevant information from messages, emails, photos and other personal content while also helping users perform actions across applications. Apple said Siri AI will be available across iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Watch and Apple Vision Pro.

“We’re excited to introduce Siri AI, a dramatically more capable and conversational assistant designed to help users find information and get things done throughout the day,” Craig Federighi, Apple’s Senior Vice President of Software Engineering, said in a company statement.

According to Apple, Siri AI is built on a new privacy-focused architecture and uses the next generation of Apple Intelligence to deliver advanced reasoning, deeper contextual understanding and broader system-wide functionality.

What Siri AI can do

Apple said the upgraded assistant can answer questions related to on-screen content, search across apps using personal context and provide responses based on current information sourced from the web.

The company also announced a dedicated Siri AI app that will allow users to revisit previous conversations across devices. Conversation history will be synced privately through iCloud.

On iPad and Mac, Siri AI has been integrated with Spotlight search, enabling users to seek answers and information directly from the operating system. Apple Watch users will also be able to initiate conversations with Siri from their wrist.

New AI features across Apple apps

Beyond Siri, Apple showcased a series of AI-powered enhancements coming to its software ecosystem.

These include new image-editing capabilities in Photos, browsing tools in Safari, expanded creative options in Image Playground and new writing and communication features integrated into Messages and Mail.

Apple said the upgrades are aimed at simplifying everyday tasks while making interactions across its platforms more intuitive.

Focus on child safety and parental controls

The company also announced new tools designed to help parents manage children’s digital experiences more effectively.

Parents setting up child accounts will be able to enable age-appropriate protections from the outset and decide which apps are accessible. Apple said new communication safety features will allow parents to approve new contacts and activate safeguards when explicit or violent content is detected in conversations.

The company described the tools as part of a broader effort to give families greater control over children’s online interactions.

“We’re delivering the next generation of Apple Intelligence across our platforms; introducing Siri AI, a profoundly more intelligent, knowledgeable, and capable Siri; expanding child safety features with intuitive new tools for families; and making our software platforms faster, more reliable, and more delightful than ever before,” Federighi said.

Apple said developer testing begins immediately through its Developer Programme, while a public beta will be released next month. Wider user availability is expected later this year.