For years, Apple executives preferred an integrated approach to AI, but the overwhelming success of generative chatbots has reportedly forced a change of heart. The new Siri chatbot will completely replace the existing “glowing ball” interface with a more interactive, multimodal experience.
Key Features of the Siri Chatbot
- Multimodal Interaction: Users can switch seamlessly between voice and typing within a single thread, similar to the ChatGPT app.
- Deep App Orchestration: Unlike standalone bots, “Campos” will be embedded into core apps like Mail, Photos, and Xcode, allowing it to perform complex tasks like “Find my flight info from an email and add a 30-minute buffer to my calendar.”
- Advanced Web Search: A new system called “World Knowledge Answers” will provide summarized web results with citations, rivaling tools like Perplexity.
- Personal Data Access: The chatbot will draw on your device’s personal context (messages, emails, and calendar) to provide tailored assistance without compromising privacy.
The “Brain” of the New Siri: A Google Partnership
In a move that underscores the speed of the AI race, Apple is reportedly “outsourcing” the primary reasoning engine for the Siri chatbot to its long-time rival.
| Component | Technology / Partner | Capabilities |
| Model (Interim) | Apple Foundation Model v10 | Powers the iOS 26.4 “Glow-up” (Smarter but not a chatbot). |
| Model (Full Chatbot) | Apple Foundation Model v11 | Comparable to Google Gemini 3; powers multi-turn back-and-forth. |
| Infrastructure | Google Cloud (TPUs) | Due to high compute needs, requests may be routed through Google servers. |
| Privacy Layer | Private Cloud Compute | Apple is working to maintain its “Privacy Bubble” even while using Google tech. |
The 2026 Rollout Timeline
The transition to an AI chatbot is expected to happen in two distinct phases:
- Spring 2026 (iOS 26.4): A “pre-chatbot” upgrade. This adds on-screen awareness and better web search but retains the classic Siri interface. It is expected to debut around March or April.
- June 2026 (WWDC): Apple will officially unveil iOS 27, iPadOS 27 (Rave), and macOS 27 (Fizz), featuring the “Campos” chatbot as the flagship addition.
- September 2026: The full chatbot launches globally alongside the iPhone 18 lineup.
Conclusion: A Three-Way Battle
By transforming Siri into a chatbot, Apple is officially entering the “Generative AI Arms Race” as a direct peer to OpenAI and Google. While Apple may be late to the chatbot party, its massive advantage remains platform ownership. By embedding “Campos” directly into the OS of over 2 billion active devices, Apple aims to make Siri the default AI companion for the masses, effectively bypassing the need for users to download third-party apps.
