The European Union has rejected Apple’s attempt to shift blame for the delay in launching its AI-powered voice assistant. The EU asserts that it is Apple’s responsibility to ensure their products adhere to regional regulations.
On Monday, Apple announced a major update to their iPhone software, introducing Siri AI — an enhanced version of Siri capable of natural conversations, retrieving data from apps like Maps and Mail, and executing various tasks.
However, Apple stated that it cannot deploy Siri AI in Europe due to the European Union’s Digital Markets Act (DMA), which regulates online competition. In response, EU Digital Affairs spokesperson Thomas Regnier clarified that the delay is solely Apple’s decision. He emphasized that the DMA does not prevent Apple from releasing new products in the EU, nor does it impose such restrictions.
EU regulations mandate that the digital platforms operating within its borders must ensure product interoperability. This requirement compels Apple to open its devices to features developed by competitors. Regnier explained that Apple was unable to develop solutions that meet the EU’s stringent privacy and security standards to facilitate interoperability.
Apple sought an exemption from these interoperability requirements, but the European Commission denied the request. Exempting Apple would have effectively favored Siri, which is powered by Google, over other competing AI assistants on Apple’s devices. Regnier noted that such an exemption would prevent other AI options from being equally available to iPhone users.
This isn’t the first clash between the EU and Apple over specific rules. Last year, Apple called for the repeal of the DMA and has previously attributed delays in rolling out new features to EU regulations.