WWDC 26: The European Union's Digital Markets Act Delays the Arrival of the New Siri AI on iOS 27 and iPadOS 27

Artificial Intelligence is, for better or worse, increasingly present in our lives. On this front, Apple has lagged in this important developing sector but is trying to catch up with the announcements made at WWDC 26 (the conference dedicated to developers). During the event, the arrival of the new personal assistant Siri AI, which improves on the much-criticized Siri we have known so far, was announced. Apple strongly believes in the new capabilities of Siri AI, but European users will face some "headaches" related to the Digital Markets Act (DMA) imposed by the European Union that will limit its availability. As explained by the Cupertino company, Siri AI integrated into iOS 27 and iPadOS 27 will not be available because "EU regulators have not accepted any of the solutions proposed by Apple." The good news is that the updated assistant will instead be available for macOS 27, visionOS 27, and watchOS 27.

Siri AI and Issues with the EU's Digital Markets Act

Craig Federighi (Senior Vice President of Software Engineering at Apple) stated, "We are deeply sorry that our users in the European Union will not be able to use Siri AI on iPhone and iPad when we release the new software versions later this year. Our hope is to eventually bring Siri AI to the EU, and we will continue to work with EU regulators to define a path in this direction. However, their refusal to engage constructively on solutions that protect privacy and security means that we cannot currently foresee a date for the availability of Siri AI on iOS and iPadOS in the European Union."

Apple mobile device users employing iOS 27 and iPadOS 27 (iPhone and iPad) will not be able to use the advanced features shown in the presentation, such as the new app, the new extended visual intelligence experience, integrated tools for writing, and even the Siri mode in the Camera app on iOS.

Bad news also for developers. Those in Europe will not be able to use or test their applications with the features of Siri AI.

In the official statement, the company criticizes the European Union's choice to give any virtual assistant direct access to users' private data in addition to the ability to directly control other installed apps. This data access does not sit well with Apple due to security concerns and AI management, with possible data manipulation and theft.

The Cupertino company continues by stating, "Given the seriousness of the risks to the user, Apple has designed a solution called Trusted System Agent, an intermediary that would allow virtual assistants to securely access the same functions and capabilities of Siri AI for devices in the EU. Apple has also shared a plan to launch Siri AI in the EU while gradually implementing the new solution over 18 months. The European Commission said no. In fact, the European Commission did not accept any of Apple’s proposals."

Apple will still try to work with the European Union to bring Siri AI to iOS 27 and iPadOS 27 as soon as possible, but currently, even in Cupertino, they do not know when it will actually be available on our continent.