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At its upcoming WWDC keynote, Apple could unveil an interesting change to its virtual assistant, Siri. According to respected Bloomberg reporter Mark Gurman, the company is discussing doing away with the "Hey Siri" trigger, which is currently required to activate Siri hands-free. This change could allow Siri users to address the assistant and issue commands with just one word—"Siri."
Siri has been one of the most distinctive features of Apple products since its launch. Voice recognition and control allow users to conveniently interact with their iPhone, iPad, or other devices. However, previously, it was necessary to say "Hey Siri" to activate the virtual assistant. Apple apparently plans to eliminate this trigger and simplify the Siri experience.
“Hey Siri” goodbye: Apple plans groundbreaking changes
Mark Gurman confirmed the possible abolition of the “Hey Siri” trigger in a recent Tweet and revealed that this could be one of the planned announcements for next week's WWDC. Back in November, Gurman reported on Apple's efforts to evolve Siri so that it recognizes and responds to commands without the "Hey Siri" trigger phrase. Users would then only have to say the word "Siri." This initiative by Apple goes hand in hand with omitting the "Hey" in the trigger phrase and improving Siri's usability. While this change may seem minor at first glance, it is a technical challenge that requires extensive artificial intelligence training and fundamental engineering work. Siri must be able to understand and interpret the "Siri" command in different accents and dialects. The current two-part trigger phrase "Hey Siri" increases the likelihood of accurate signal recognition.
Alexa, who? Apple plans voice assistant upgrade at WWDC
This innovation would bring Siri closer to Amazon's voice assistant Alexa, which can be activated simply by saying "Alexa." Gurman also emphasized that Apple is also working on deeper integration of Siri with third-party applications and services. This should enable improved support through additional context. Gurman originally predicted that the changes to Siri would not be introduced until 2023 or 2024. However, his recent tweet suggests that an announcement could be made as early as next week's WWDC keynote. It is speculated that these improvements to Siri may coincide with the unveiling of Apple's mixed reality headset, which is expected to feature voice control. The further development of Siri and the elimination of the "Hey Siri" trigger could thus represent an important step toward improving the user experience with future Apple products. (Photo by DedMityay / Bigstockphoto)
