iPhone users will soon be able to send or delete emails using their voice in a major update to Apple’s Siri digital assistant.
The tech giant is preparing to reveal a plethora of new artificial intelligence (AI) features for its iOS smartphone operating system as it seeks to show it has an answer to rival Google’s AI tools.
The iPhone maker is expected to reveal a deal with OpenAI that will make its Siri chatbot – which was first launched more than a decade ago – more intelligent and useful.
The voice assistant will be able to control more features within apps for the first time. This will include using voice prompts for sending and deleting emails and sending AI-generated “smart replies”, according to reports from AppleInsider.
The tech giant is also planning to add new AI tools to its Photos app, adding a Clean Up tool that can remove unwanted objects or blemishes from photos using AI.
A revamped Notes app is also expected to add features that enable voice transcriptions and summaries.
Apple is planning to dub its new products “Apple Intelligence”, according to Bloomberg. Other new offers include AI-generated emojis.
Despite revealing Siri as a “humble personal assistant” in 2011, its technology has never been as universally popular as Apple had hoped.
Most people use voice commands for simple tasks such as dictating a text message or asking about the weather, rather than as an essential digital assistant.
Over the past two years, rivals including Microsoft and Google have ploughed ahead with more advanced digital assistants following the launch of ChatGPT.
These chatbots are quickly being added to smartphones and adding voice and video integration.
Apple is expected to announce a deal with OpenAI, the developer of ChatGPT, to make its voice assistant more conversational.
The tech giant is hoping its rival effort will provide a boost to smartphone sales as Apple endures a deep sales rut. In May, it revealed its sharpest decline in phone sales in three years.
The tech giant is planning to disclose new updates to its iOS software at its annual Worldwide Developers Conference in California at 6pm.