Standalone Siri app to offer auto-deleting chat history, launch with beta label: report

Apple is finally ready to show what it's been working on. At WWDC next month, the company is expected to unveil a standalone Siri app that actually lives up to the AI assistant hype we've been hearing about for years.

The new app will include auto-deleting chat history, similar to how disappearing messages work in iMessage. It's a privacy-first approach that fits Apple's brand, but also acknowledges that people want their AI conversations to feel less permanent.

According to Bloomberg's Mark Gurman, Apple plans to slap a beta label on the new Siri even when it launches publicly in the fall. That's become Apple's safety net for ambitious features, giving them room to iterate without the expectation of perfection.

This matters because Apple has been conspicuously behind in the AI assistant race. While ChatGPT, Claude, and other tools have become daily drivers for knowledge workers, Siri has remained stuck setting timers and playing music.

A standalone app signals Apple is taking this seriously. Instead of just bolting AI features onto the existing Siri, they're rebuilding the experience from scratch. That's what it takes to compete when your users are already paying for ChatGPT Plus.

The real test will be whether Apple Intelligence can match the capabilities people already get from other AI tools. A pretty interface and good privacy features matter, but not if the underlying AI can't keep up with what users need to get work done.