Apple Inc. is preparing an artificial intelligence (AI) product blitz that would put a new sheen on its device lineup with robots that include a life-like version of Siri, a smart speaker with screen, new Home OS, and major home security services. But the larger question may be: Is it too late?
Skepticism runs deep over the AI makeover, which is set to roll out the next few years, after previous efforts with Siri, Apple Intelligence, and Apple Vision Pro largely fizzled. But a resolute Tim Cook, Apple’s CEO, insists the company “must win in AI” and restore its innovation edge, according to a Bloomberg report.
The company has no choice, as the tech industry embraces and runs with AI. Apple’s next wave of hardware would be headlined by a tabletop robot modeled after Siri that looks like an iPad on a motorized arm that swivels. The long-rumored bot, scheduled to debut in 2027, essentially follows its owner and interacts with them. It can also interact with video calls and runs on a more advanced, conversational version of the voice assistant.
A more AI-friendly iteration of the maligned Siri is a cornerstone of Apple’s goal of turning Siri into an intelligent hub of a connected home experience. Apple reportedly is designing a smart home display, to be released by mid-2026, that would function as a hub for controlling the smart home system and its devices – possibly with the ability to use facial recognition for a more customized experience. Additionally, Apple is working on a lineup of home security devices that includes a battery-powered camera that operates for months without recharging, and a smart doorbell that could unlock for familiar visitors, Bloomberg reported.
The upgraded Siri would operate across the upcoming AI hardware, with a visual redesign and wider capabilities across iPhone, iPad, and the forthcoming home devices.
The smorgasbord of Apple AI news doesn’t end there. The company, longer term, is developing slimmer iPhones, foldable devices, smart glasses, and a next-generation headset to follow Apple Vision Pro.
But the immediate focus is shoring up the company’s AI efforts at a time where it badly lags rivals Meta Platforms Inc., Microsoft Corp., Alphabet Inc.’s Google, OpenAI, Anthropic, NVIDIA Corp., and others.
In attempting to weave AI more deeply into its ecosystem and regain lost ground in a fast-moving market, Apple is following its well-established, and successful, strategy of perfecting its products in an emerging market and bringing along its legions of fans to that market, as it did with smartphones, watches, and digital pads. But the speed of competing AI efforts, and Apple’s loss of talent to Meta and others, make this a particularly daunting challenge, industry analysts say.
Wedbush Securities analyst Daniel Ives, a historically bullish Apple backer, has urged the company to acquire Perplexity AI, or strike a technology partnership with Google Gemini to improve its market standing.
Mitch Ashley, vice president, practice lead, DevOps and AppDev, at Futurum Group, believes it isn’t too late for Apple.
“We have the old Alexa, not an AI-driven Alexa…yet. Home security is well entrenched with even Ring becoming a big player, as well as cable providers, traditional players,” he said. “But no AI yet, and what would AI do for home security? Well, stop telling me indiscriminately anything with motion sets it off and only tell me when someone or something who shouldn’t be there.”
“Robots? Plenty of opportunity unless robots are the sole domain of vacuuming robots like Roombas,” Ashley added.
