How 2025 could make or break Apple Intelligence and Siri

2025, wow. Can you believe it? It feels like yesterday we were waiting for the launch of Apple Vision Pro, excited at the prospect of Apple’s impact in the VR/AR headset space. While it’s fair to say the Vision Pro’s launch was lukewarm, 2024 was instead dominated by another Apple launch.

In June, Apple revealed Apple Intelligence, the company’s first foray into the world of AI, initially launching in September with a feature set led by Writing Tools, Apple’s take on popular proofreading/rewriting software like Grammarly. A few months later, in December, Apple followed the initial Apple Intelligence launch with the release of iOS 18.2, headlined by Genmoji, Image Playground, and ChatGPT integration in Siri.

iOS 18.2 feels like a tipping point for Apple Intelligence; in fact, it feels like the iOS 18 that should’ve launched with the iPhone 16 lineup of smartphones back in September. Instead, Apple’s AI development lagged behind its hardware, leading to delays and a scattered release schedule, so we’ll need to wait a few more months to see everything Apple Intelligence is truly capable of.

I’m incredibly bullish on Apple Intelligence, I truly believe that if any company is going to find purpose for these often gimmicky AI features, then that company is Apple. As I write this, iOS 18.2 has completely changed how I think about Apple Intelligence, and I’m using Genmoji almost daily alongside Mail Categorization and Notification summaries.

Even so, Apple Intelligence is still missing its core, and 2025 will be the year it gets the upgraded Siri we’ve all been waiting for. If Siri can act as the personal assistant I’ve always wanted from AI, built into my Apple products, then Apple Intelligence, just like other Apple tools like Universal Clipboard and AirDrop, will become an absolute necessity, not just for my workflow but for many others.

I’ve written at length about Genmoji’s ability to introduce AI-powered tools to the masses, a glimpse into the future of Apple Intelligence’s true capabilities. Next year, with the full gamut of Apple Intelligence on full display, we’ll see whether or not Apple’s plan to introduce AI into its devices later than competitors like Google has paid off.

Make or break

I don’t say this lightly when I say 2025 will be the year we find out if consumer products really need exclusive AI features. If Apple can capture the imagination of its client base and make Apple Intelligence a must, then we’ll be entering a very exciting AI-fulled future. Apple fans notoriously want simplicity. If Apple can sell the world of AI to them, then the company has cracked the code.

But what if 2025’s Siri update doesn’t meet the expectations? That’s when we’ll really see how much Apple believes in AI. If Siri’s massive overhaul doesn’t fulfill the promise of bringing an incredibly intelligent voice assistant to the world of Apple devices, not just through a ChatGPT extension, then the average consumer might turn away from the Apple Intelligence future we’ve been promised.

Apple thinks of Apple Intelligence as an extension of the operating systems that run on iPhone, iPad, and Mac; it’s essentially there for people when they need it, not something you need to learn to incorporate into your life. But, if no one ever needs it, and the final release of Apple Intelligence-powered Siri in 18.4 isn’t as groundbreaking as we hope, then AI might never break through into the Apple ecosystem.

2025 will be the year when we truly see the benefits of AI in consumer products, and Apple Intelligence’s success or failure will be at the forefront of that narrative.

As I write this in December, I’m still leaning towards Apple Intelligence making huge waves when it comes to convincing customers to upgrade to a new device; that said, until there’s a genuine reason to opt for AI, we might see a lot of these tools go unnoticed, almost as if they don’t even exist.

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