Apple is reportedly working on a project to simplify the phrase ‘Hey Siri’ to ‘Siri’. Currently, Apple users have to say ‘Hey Siri’ to launch the voice assistant on iPhone, iPad, Mac, Apple Watch and HomePod. But, according to Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman, Apple The goal is to make this process a little easier. “The company is working on an initiative to drop the “Hey” in the trigger phrase so that the user only needs to say ‘Siri-command-along’,” Gurman says in the latest edition of its PowerOne newsletter.
He says the Cupertino-based company, California, has been working on the change for several months. If all goes well, the change could come next year or early next year.
While this may seem like a small change, making the switch is a technical challenge that requires a significant amount of AI training and underlying engineering work. According to the report, Apple is testing Simplified Wake Word with employees and collecting necessary training data.
By turning the existing two-phrase wake word into a single phrase, Apple aims to compete with Amazon’s Alexa, which requires users to say “Alexa” instead of “Hey Alexa.” Back in 2018, Microsoft changed its wake words from “Hey Cortana” to “Cortana” on smart speakers. Google Assistant, on the other hand, requires an ‘Ok Google’ or ‘Hey Google’ prompt. The tech giant is reportedly working on allowing users to make follow-up requests without having to repeat the wake word.
“Removing the ‘Hey’ in Hey Siri will also allow Apple to speed up back-to-back requests,” the report said. Gurman also says in the newsletter that the iPhone maker plans to integrate voice assistants into third-party apps and services. Apple aims to improve Siri’s ability for users to understand and take the right course of action.
To recall, Siri first debuted on the iPhone 4s in 2011. Apple used Susan Bennett’s voice for Siri from 2011 to 2013.
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