Apple officially released Siri AI at the 2026 WWDC opening keynote and announced that it will be pushed to users this fall with iOS 27, macOS 27, iPadOS 27 and visionOS 27. Siri AI is built on Apple Intelligence and will bring greater understanding and a new chatbot-like interface to the voice assistant. Users will have access to the new version of Siri AI as long as the device itself supports Apple Intelligence, and is not limited to new hardware released after 2024.
At the press conference, Apple displayed a "most advanced device" support list that caused misunderstandings from the outside world. Many social media and forum posts asserted that only the latest iPhones and Macs can use Siri AI. In fact, that table points to what Apple calls the “most advanced local model in history” (AFM Core Advanced), not the overall feature support range of Siri AI. As a result, some users have questioned online, believing that devices such as the iPhone 17, which they claim are “AI ready”, will be excluded from new features this fall.
Apple clarified in follow-up information that this "most advanced local model" is only used for two specific capabilities of Siri AI, and the remaining Siri AI and Apple Intelligence functions will still be decentralized to all devices that support Apple Intelligence as originally planned. According to the introduction, only the following two features require the latest generation or higher specification hardware: one is to allow users to more deeply customize Siri’s voice, and the other is a significant improvement in system-level voice dictation capabilities. In addition to these two items, Siri AI’s new interface and most intelligent functions will be available on existing Apple Intelligence devices.
In terms of hardware requirements, iPhones using this "most advanced local model" are currently limited to iPhone Air, iPhone 17 Pro and iPhone 17 Pro Max models. The iPad requires an M5 or newer chip with 12GB of memory, while the Mac requires an M3 or newer chip with at least 12GB of memory. These models will get the full set of Siri AI capabilities this fall, including the two aforementioned features that rely on high-end native models.
At the same time, devices such as MacBook Pro equipped with early Apple Silicon such as M1, and iPhone 16 Pro Max supporting Apple Intelligence can still get the new version of Siri AI after system updates, but they will not be able to use the two additional high-end features. Still, some users have taken to forums to discuss early retirement of the M1 Pro MacBook Pro, or are upset that the iPhone 16 Pro Max won't get the "full Siri upgrade." Commentators believe that this panic stems more from the out-of-context interpretation of the press conference’s words and the amplification effect of online public opinion.
The report pointed out that if you carefully look at Apple's official description and support list of Siri AI, it is not difficult to find that Siri AI and "the most advanced local model" are not the same concept. The former is a complete set of Assistant upgrades based on Apple Intelligence, and the latter is just a high-spec native model that two of the features rely on. The author even joked that this misunderstanding could have been easily avoided by simply searching for "Siri AI supported devices", but it was further amplified by the "second-hand interpretation" of social platforms and some AI chat tools.
Overall, with the launch of iOS 27, macOS 27, iPadOS 27 and visionOS 27 this fall, existing iPhone, iPad, Mac and Apple Vision Pro users who support Apple Intelligence will receive a more unified Siri AI experience upgrade. What is really divided by hardware generations is voice appearance customization and system-level dictation, two new features that require higher computing power and memory, rather than whether Siri AI itself is available. For most users who are already in the Apple Intelligence camp, there is no need to rush to change devices to enjoy the major improvements brought by the new version of Siri AI.