Siri’s Original Co-Designer Says Apple’s ‘Fear of Not Being Perfect’ Hampers Siri Revamp
In 2011, Apple launched Siri, a groundbreaking digital assistant embedded in the iPhone. Luc Julia, a co-designer of the original Siri and now the chief scientific officer of French automaker Renault, told PYMNTS that Siri was revolutionary for its time, using state-of-the-art machine learning. However, Julia noted a pattern: Apple often lags in adopting new technologies.
“They took their time, and it is happening the same way today” with generative AI, Julia said.
Apple’s Siri interface.
Following Amazon’s release of the Alexa digital assistant in 2014, which utilized deep learning, Apple waited three years to integrate deep learning into Siri, according to Julia. Now, with generative AI nearly three years old, this pattern continues. Apple recently announced a delay in implementing some AI improvements to Siri until 2026, though the company did not offer a specific reason for the postponement. This news came shortly after Amazon announced Alexa+, which incorporates generative and agentic AI.
Siri is Falling Behind Rivals
Julia emphasized that Apple needs to accelerate its advancements, as consumers are beginning to compare Siri unfavorably against competitors like ChatGPT, the new Alexa, and Google Gemini. “I would try to push [an advanced conversational AI version] as soon as possible,” he said, particularly given the rapid advancement of generative AI. Apple has partnered with OpenAI for use of their AI models in iOS devices, however, advanced functionalities have yet to appear in Siri. “People are realizing more and more that they are not at the front end of the technology,” he said.
Even Apple Intelligence, the name for the company’s AI features included in high-end or new Apple products, has received a lukewarm response.
A Perfectionist Culture
Julia attributes Apple’s slow pace to a corporate culture that mandates near-perfection before product releases. He cited the example of Steve Jobs insisting on perfect alignment of chips on circuit boards, even if unseen by the user. With generative AI, which “is difficult to control totally”, Julia explained potential problems such as toxic responses or ‘jailbreaking,’ which can lead to misuse.
“Apple doesn’t want that. They want to control everything. They want to be sure that it is going to be clean and creative, which is pretty much impossible with Gen AI.”
Julia also referenced the criticism Apple Maps received upon launch in 2012, with issues ranging from mislabeled locations to incorrect directions, noting that Apple is hesitant to repeat this kind of experience.
“They are falling behind because of this fear of not being perfect,” Julia said. Apple did not respond to PYMNTS’ request for comment.
Steve Jobs Alone Wanted Siri
Siri originated at SRI International, a research and development group, where Julia was a director. Apple acquired Siri in April 2010 and integrated it into the iPhone 4S in 2011. Julia said that many senior Apple executives were initially against the idea of a voice assistant like Siri.
“Only one guy wanted it,” he said. “It was Steve Jobs.”
Julia believes that the same caution about accelerating Siri’s development prevails among current Apple executives.
“It’s the same story we are talking about today, which is, don’t go too fast,” Julia stated. “We’ll see if we want to do it.”
Julia noted consumer desire for rapid adoption of new technologies. A PYMNTS Intelligence report, “How Consumers Want to Live in the Voice Economy,” confirmed growing interest in voice-activated technologies among consumers looking to multitask in their daily lives. Julia suggested that Apple’s innovation has been relatively slow since Jobs’s death in 2011, pointing to the Apple Vision Pro as the most innovative development since. Julia advised current Apple CEO, Tim Cook: “I would tell him that he needs to do some kind of minimum viable product … in conversational AI, just to show that they are in the race.”
