Apple is about to give Siri a major makeover with iOS 27. The virtual assistant will look and act very differently starting this fall. The update will debut at WWDC 2026, and it’s shaping up to be the biggest change to Siri since it launched.

The new Siri will live inside the iPhone’s Dynamic Island. When you summon Siri, a pill-shaped animation will appear there with a glowing “searching” label. This replaces the old full-screen Siri interface with a more subtle, yet interactive, design. You’ll also be able to swipe down from the top center of the screen to open a new “Search or Ask” bar. This lets you type or speak queries and commands.

The entire Siri interface will use a sleek dark theme. Apple chose vibrant colors inspired by the WWDC 2026 logo — deep blues, golds, and glowing accents. The dark background will stay even if your iPhone is in light mode. This bold choice makes Siri stand out as a focused, immersive experience.

Apple is also launching a dedicated Siri app in iOS 27. This app will let users chat with Siri in a more natural, conversational way. It supports both voice and text input. You can upload photos and documents for Siri to analyze. Plus, you can scroll through your conversation history and pick up where you left off. This turns Siri into a chatbot-style assistant, much like ChatGPT or Google’s Bard, but built tightly into Apple’s ecosystem.

A Smarter Siri Powered by Gemini AI

Behind the scenes, Apple is using Google’s Gemini large language model to power the new Siri. This means Siri will understand and handle more complex, multi-step requests. Instead of simple one-command interactions, you can ask Siri to schedule meetings based on your calendar or open recent email attachments and add them to presentations. It will remember context from earlier conversations, making it feel more like a real assistant.

Siri will also integrate more deeply with Apple’s apps and services. You’ll be able to control hundreds of app features using natural language. For example, telling Siri to send a message when you get home or to find specific notes will become easier and more reliable. The assistant can even pull on-screen context to help complete tasks.

This leap in AI capabilities addresses years of criticism that Siri lagged behind other assistants. Apple aims to make Siri a central part of daily iPhone use by making it smarter, more conversational, and more useful.

New AI Features Beyond Siri

Besides Siri, iOS 27 will bring several other AI-powered tools. One is AI-generated wallpapers. Instead of picking from preset images, you can create custom backgrounds with simple text prompts. Another new feature is called Photos “Extend.” It uses AI to expand photos beyond their original frame by generating matching scenery.

Apple is also adding automatic subtitles for videos that lack captions. This will work across personal videos and social clips, making content more accessible. The Shortcuts app is getting smarter too. You’ll be able to create automations using plain English commands, like setting up a morning routine that turns on lights and plays music.

Writing help is coming to the keyboard as well. This AI-powered feature will suggest clearer, more polished sentences as you type. It can fix grammar, improve tone, and turn rough notes into polished messages without switching apps.

Most of these AI upgrades will require newer iPhones. The iPhone 15 Pro and later models have the processing power and dedicated neural engines needed to run these features smoothly. Older devices will not support many of the new AI tools, highlighting Apple’s focus on cutting-edge hardware.

Privacy remains a top priority. Apple plans to process much of the AI work directly on your device instead of sending data to the cloud. This keeps your personal information safer and under your control, contrasting with other AI services that rely heavily on servers.

Overall, Apple’s Siri redesign and AI upgrades aim to make the assistant feel less like a simple tool and more like a helpful, natural companion. The emphasis is on practical, everyday usefulness rather than flashy gimmicks. When iOS 27 arrives, Siri will finally catch up to the AI assistants users expect.