Last week, Apple revealed that the AI-revamped Siri was facing delays, and now there are reports that this is having a knock-on effect in the smart home.
Apple has been a bit quiet on the smart home hardware front – the latest HomePod launched in early 2023 and we haven’t had a new Apple TV model for over 2 years – but in September last year it was purported that was all set to change, with two new smart display devices set to be in the pipeline.
But now, the same respected tipster that spilled those beans, has revealed details of a setback.
Mark Gurman, over on Bloomberg, has stated that “the company had hoped to announce this product in March… but because the device, to an extent, relies on the delayed Siri capabilities, it has been postponed as well.”
Those Siri delays, in case you’re not up to speed with the latest from Apple Park, were detailed to Daring Fireball by Apple spokeswoman Jacqueline Roy:
“Siri helps our users find what they need and get things done quickly, and in just the past six months, we’ve made Siri more conversational, introduced new features like type to Siri and product knowledge, and added an integration with ChatGPT. We’ve also been working on a more personalized Siri, giving it more awareness of your personal context, as well as the ability to take action for you within and across your apps. It’s going to take us longer than we thought to deliver on these features and we anticipate rolling them out in the coming year.”
What has been delayed on the smart home front isn’t confirmed, but Gurman has previously reported on a wall mounted home hub, like an Apple-flavored Echo Hub, that “can control appliances, handle videoconferencing and use AI to navigate apps.”
Codenamed J490, Apple’s new smart home hub is said to boast AI Intelligence and is purported to be a top priority for CEO Tim Cook as he attempts to catch up on the likes of Google, and especially Amazon, who have stolen a march when it comes to smart home control.
Siri will, of course, be on hand for voice controls – hence the delay – you should be able to control all of your HomeKit connected devices, either by voice commands or tapping on the display.
Gurman has also mentioned a more expensive version coming down the line, codenamed J595, said to be a high-end smart display with a robotic limb, blending the functionality of an iPad with a futuristic twist.
Amazon has stolen a bit of a march on Apple again, if these reports ring true, as it recently took the covers off of an AI-supercharged version of Alexa, dubbed Alexa+, which will be rolling out in the coming weeks.
