In a series of reports released on February 11, 2026, Apple has reportedly pushed back the rollout of its most advanced Siri AI features. While some improvements are still expected this spring, the most “transformative” capabilities are being staggered across updates throughout 2026 and into 2027.
The delay centers on technical hurdles discovered during the final testing of iOS 26.4, the update previously touted as the “rebirth” of Siri.
Revised Siri Rollout Timeline
Apple is moving away from a single “big bang” launch in favor of a phased release to ensure stability.
| Target Update | Expected Release | Status of Key Features |
| iOS 26.4 | March/April 2026 | Basic LLM-based reasoning and better language understanding. |
| iOS 26.5 | May 2026 | Delayed: On-screen awareness and early personal context features (Preview). |
| iOS 27.0 | Sept 2026 | Delayed: Full App Intents (multi-step commands) and chatbot-style memory. |
Why the Setback?
According to reports from Bloomberg and MacRumors, internal testing of the new “Linwood” architecture—which integrates Google Gemini technology into Siri—revealed several critical “snags”:
- Response Latency: The new Siri takes too long to process complex queries, leading to a sluggish user experience compared to competitors like ChatGPT or Claude.
- Accuracy Issues: Testers found that Siri often misinterpreted personal context or failed to correctly execute “App Intents” (e.g., “Find the photo Eric sent and crop it”).
- The “ChatGPT Fallback” Bug: In an embarrassing glitch, the upgraded Siri was found to occasionally default to its ChatGPT integration even for tasks that Apple’s own Gemini-powered models were supposed to handle.
- Speech Cut-offs: A persistent bug has been identified where Siri cuts off users mid-sentence if they speak too quickly.
Key Features Impacted by the Delay
The features hit hardest are those Apple has been promoting since the original 2024 announcement:
- Personal Context Understanding: The ability for Siri to look through your messages, emails, and files to answer questions like “When does my mom’s flight land?” is now likely to launch as a “Preview” in May at the earliest.
- On-Screen Awareness: Allowing Siri to “see” what you are doing in an app and take actions based on that content is being moved to later in the year.
- Multi-Step App Actions: The ability for Siri to perform complex, cross-app tasks (like editing a photo and then emailing it to a specific contact) is now largely slated for the iOS 27 release in September.
Leadership Shift
The delay coincides with a major shakeup in Apple’s AI leadership. John Giannandrea, who had overseen Siri development since 2018, is set to retire in spring 2026. The project is now being “supercharged” under Craig Federighi, with a focus on narrowing the gap between Siri and Android’s integrated Gemini features.
“Apple is choosing to ship stable, reliable code rather than a buggy, ‘smart’ assistant that might hallucinate with personal data.” — Industry Analyst Mark Gurman, Feb 11, 2026.
