Apple WWDC 2026: Siri AI Powered by Google Gemini

What did Apple announce at WWDC 2026?

Apple held its Worldwide Developer Conference 2026 keynote at Apple Park, delivering a slate of software announcements for its operating systems. The headline reveal was Siri AI, an updated version of Siri that Apple first demoed at WWDC 2024 and has been delayed since.

According to Engadget's full WWDC 2026 keynote breakdown, Apple confirmed back in January that a "more personalized Siri" was on the way, and that it would be powered by Google's Gemini models. That updated assistant is now officially called Siri AI.

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What is Siri AI and how does it work?

Siri AI is Apple's overhauled voice assistant, built on Google's Gemini models rather than Apple's previous in-house approach. On iPhones equipped with a Dynamic Island, a Siri animation will appear there when the assistant is active, per Engadget's keynote recap.

The update also includes visual changes alongside the underlying model upgrade.

Who is taking over from Tim Cook?

This WWDC was Tim Cook's last as Apple's CEO. John Ternus, Apple's senior vice president of hardware engineering, will assume the CEO role on September 1, as reported by NPR's WWDC 2026 coverage.

Ternus's background is in hardware engineering, which marks a notable shift in the profile of Apple's top executive.

What else was announced?

Apple also previewed changes to its Liquid Glass design language, with Engadget noting it "will look a little less liquid" in an upcoming update. Beyond that, the keynote focused on software coming to Apple's operating systems later this year.

The confirmed next milestone is John Ternus officially becoming Apple CEO on September 1.