-as of [30 SEPTEMBER 2024]–

*OFFICIAL LINK*

-[SIRI] SYSTEM SETTINGS-

-‘siri’ is a ‘virtual assistant’ that is part of apple’s [iOS / iPadOS / watchOS / macOS / tvOS] operating systems-

The assistant uses voice queries and a natural-language user interface to…

answer questions,

make recommendations,

and perform actions

by delegating requests to a set of Internet services

The software adapts to users’ individual language usages, searches, and preferences, with continuing use.

Returned results are individualized.

Siri is a spin-off from a project originally developed by the SRI International Artificial Intelligence Center.

Its speech recognition engine was provided by Nuance Communications, and Siri uses advanced machine learning technologies to function.

Its original American, British, and Australian voice actors recorded their respective voices around 2005, unaware of the recordings’ eventual usage in Siri.

The voice assistant was released as an app for iOS in February 2010, and it was acquired by Apple two months later.

Siri was then integrated into iPhone 4S at its release in October 2011.

At that time, the separate app was also removed from the iOS App Store.

Siri has since become an integral part of Apple’s products, having been adapted into other hardware devices over the years, including newer iPhone models, as well as iPad, iPod Touch, Mac, AirPods, Apple TV, and HomePod.

Siri supports a wide range of user commands, including performing phone actions, checking basic information, scheduling events and reminders, handling device settings, searching the Internet, navigating areas, finding information on entertainment, and is able to engage with iOS-integrated apps.

With the release of iOS 10 in 2016, Apple opened up limited third-party access to Siri, including third-party messaging apps, as well as payments, ride-sharing, and Internet calling apps.

With the release of iOS 11, Apple updated Siri’s voices for more clear, human voices, started supporting follow-up questions and language translation, and additional third-party actions.

Siri’s original release on iPhone 4S in 2011 received mixed reviews

It received praise for its voice recognition and contextual knowledge of user information, including calendar appointments, but was criticized for requiring stiff user commands and having a lack of flexibility. It was also criticized for lacking information on certain nearby places, and for its inability to understand certain English accents. In 2016 and 2017, a number of media reports said that Siri lacked innovation, particularly against new competing voice assistants. The reports concerned Siri’s limited set of features, “bad” voice recognition, and undeveloped service integrations as causing trouble for Apple in the field of artificial intelligence and cloud-based services; the basis for the complaints reportedly due to stifled development, as caused by Apple’s prioritization of user privacy and executive power struggles within the company.[3]

Contents
Development
Siri is a spin-out from the SRI International Artificial Intelligence Center, and is an offshoot of the US Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency’s (DARPA)-funded CALO project.[4] It was co-founded by Dag Kittlaus, Tom Gruber, and UCLA alumnus Adam Cheyer.[4] Kittlaus named Siri after a co-worker in Norway, and it means “beautiful woman who leads you to victory” in Norwegian.[5]

Siri’s speech recognition engine was provided by Nuance Communications, a speech technology company.[6] This was acknowledged by neither Apple nor Nuance for years,[7][8] until Nuance CEO Paul Ricci confirmed the information at a 2011 technology conference.[6] The speech recognition system makes use of sophisticated machine learning techniques, including convolutional neural networks and long short-term memory.[9]

The initial Siri prototype was implemented using the Active platform, a joint project between the Artificial Intelligence Center of SRI International and the Vrai Group at Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne. The Active platform was the focus of a Ph.D. thesis led by Didier Guzzoni, who joined Siri as its chief scientist.[10]

Siri was acquired by Apple Inc. in April 2010 under the direction of Steve Jobs.[11] Apple’s first notion of a digital personal assistant was originally a concept video in 1987, called the Knowledge Navigator.[12][13]

Voices
The original American voice of Siri was provided in July 2005 by Susan Bennett, unaware that it would eventually be used for the voice assistant.[14][15] A report from The Verge in September 2013 about voice actors, their work, and machine learning developments, made hints that Allison Dufty was the voice behind Siri,[16][17] though this was disproven when Dufty wrote on her website that she was “absolutely, positively not the voice of Siri.”[15] Citing growing pressure, Bennett revealed her role as Siri in October, and her claim was proven by Ed Primeau, an American audio forensics expert.[15] Apple has never confirmed the information.[15]

The original British male voice was provided by Jon Briggs, a former technology journalist.[14] Having discovered that he was the voice of Siri by watching television, he first spoke only about his role in November 2011, also acknowledging his voice work was done “five or six years ago” without knowing the recordings’ final usage form.[18][19]

The original Australian voice was provided by Karen Jacobsen, a voice-over artist known in Australia for her work as the GPS girl.[14][20]

As part of an interview between all three voice actors and The Guardian, Briggs stated that “the original system was recorded for a US company called Scansoft, who were then bought by Nuance. Apple simply licensed it.”[20]

With iOS 11, Apple auditioned hundreds of candidates to find a new female voices, then recorded hours of speech, including different personalities and expressions, and built a new text-to-speech voice based on deep learning technology.[21]

Integration
Siri was originally released as a stand-alone application for the iOS operating system in February 2010, and at the time, the developers were also intending to release Siri for Android and BlackBerry devices.[22] Two months later, Apple acquired Siri.[23][24][25] On October 4, 2011, Apple introduced the iPhone 4S with a beta version of Siri.[26][27] After the announcement, Apple removed the existing standalone Siri app from App Store.[28] TechCrunch wrote that, despite the Siri app’s support for iPhone 4, its removal from App Store might also have had a financial aspect for the company, in providing an incentive for customers to upgrade devices.[28] Third-party developer Steven Troughton-Smith, along with 13-year-old Zak Shafi (@zshafi), however, managed to port Siri to iPhone 4, though without being able to communicate with Apple’s servers.[29] A few days later, Shafi and Troughton-Smith, working with an anonymous person nicknamed “Chpwn”, managed to fully hack Siri, enabling its full functionalities on iPhone 4 and iPod Touch devices.[30] Shafi split from the group, founding SimplySiri with other developers to provide public access to the new founded exploit. [31] Additionally, developers were also able to successfully create and distribute legal ports of Siri to any device capable of running iOS 5, though a proxy server was required for Apple server interaction.[32]

Over the years, Apple has expanded the line of officially supported products, including newer iPhone models,[33] as well as iPad support in June 2012,[34] iPod Touch support in September 2012,[35] Apple TV support, and the stand-alone Siri Remote, in September 2015,[36] Mac and AirPods support in September 2016,[37][38] and HomePod support in February 2018.[39][40]

Venture capital firm Mangrove Capital Partners predicted that Apple will launch a SiriOS at its developer conference in 2020 to further grow the Siri ecosystem. SiriOS could rival something like Amazon’s Alexa Skills platform, which makes it easy for developers to implement Alexa functionality. Apple currently offers SiriKit to developers, but one possibility is that a SiriOS could work across iOS, iPadOS, and macOS with ease.[41]

Features and options
Apple offers a wide range of voice commands to interact with Siri, including, but not limited to:[42]

Phone and Text actions, such as “Call Sarah”, “Read my new messages”, “Set the timer for 10 minutes”, and “Send email to mom”
Check basic information, including “What’s the weather like today?” and “How many dollars are in a Euro?”
Schedule events and reminders, including “Schedule a meeting” and “Remind me to”
Handle device settings, such as “Take a picture”, “Turn off Wi-Fi”, and “Increase the brightness”
Search the Internet, including “Define …”, “Find pictures of …”, and “Search Twitter for …”
Navigation, including “Take me home”, “What’s traffic like on the way home?”, and “Find driving directions to …”
Translate words and phrases from English to a few languages, such as “How do I say where is the nearest hotel in French”
Entertainment, such as “What basketball games are on today?”, “What are some movies playing near me?”, and “What’s the synopsis of …?”
Engage with iOS-integrated apps, including “Pause Apple Music” and “Like this song”
Handle payments through Apple Pay, such as “Apple Pay 25 dollars to Mike for concert tickets” or “Send 41 dollars to Ivana.”
Siri also offers numerous pre-programmed responses to amusing questions.[43] Such questions include “What is the meaning of life?” to which Siri may reply “All evidence to date suggests it’s chocolate”; “Why am I here?”, to which it may reply “I don’t know. Frankly, I’ve wondered that myself”; and “Will you marry me?”, to which it may respond with “My End User Licensing Agreement does not cover marriage. My apologies.”[44][45]

Initially limited to female voices, Apple announced in June 2013 that Siri would feature a gender option, adding a male voice counterpart.[46]

In September 2014, Apple added the ability for users to speak “Hey Siri” to enable the assistant without the requirement of physically handling the device.[47]

In September 2015, the “Hey Siri” feature was updated to include individualized voice recognition, a presumed effort to prevent non-owner activation.[48][49]

With the announcement of iOS 10 in June 2016, Apple opened up limited third-party developer access to Siri through a dedicated application programming interface (API). The API restricts usage of Siri to engaging with third-party messaging apps, payment apps, ride-sharing apps, and Internet calling apps.[50][51]

In iOS 11, Siri is able to handle follow-up questions, supports language translation, and opens up to more third-party actions, including task management.[52][53] Additionally, users are able to type to Siri,[54] and a new, privacy-minded “on-device learning” technique improves Siri’s suggestions by privately analyzing personal usage of different iOS applications.[55]

Reception
Siri received mixed reviews during its beta release as an integrated part of iPhone 4S in October 2011.

MG Siegler of TechCrunch wrote that Siri was “great,” praising the potential for Siri after losing the beta tag:

“The amount of times Siri hasn’t been able to understand and execute my request is astonishingly low. … Just imagine what will happen when Apple partners with other services to expand Siri further. And imagine when they have an API that any developer can use. This really could alter the mobile landscape.”[56]

Writing for The New York Times, David Pogue also praised Siri’s language understanding and ability to understand context:

“[Siri] thinks for a few seconds, displays a beautifully formatted response and speaks in a calm female voice. … It’s mind-blowing how inexact your utterances can be. Siri understands everything from, ‘What’s the weather going to be like in Tucson this weekend?’ to ‘Will I need an umbrella tonight?’ … Once, I tried saying, ‘Make an appointment with Patrick for Thursday at 3.’ Siri responded, ‘Note that you already have an all-day appointment about “Boston Trip” for this Thursday. Shall I schedule this anyway?’ Unbelievable.”[57]

Jacqui Cheng of Ars Technica wrote that Apple’s claims of what Siri could do were bold, and the early demos “even bolder”:

“Though Siri shows real potential, these kinds of high expectations are bound to be disappointed. … Apple makes clear that the product is still in beta—an appropriate label, in our opinion.”[58]

While praising its ability to “decipher our casual language” and deliver “very specific and accurate result,” sometimes even providing additional information, Cheng noted and criticized its restrictions, particularly when the language moved away from “stiffer commands” into more human interactions. One example included the phrase “Send a text to Jason, Clint, Sam, and Lee saying we’re having dinner at Silver Cloud,” which Siri interpreted as sending a message to Jason only, containing the text “Clint Sam and Lee saying we’re having dinner at Silver Cloud.” She also noted a lack of proper editability, as saying “Edit message to say: We’re at Silver Cloud and you should come find us,” generated “Clint Sam and Lee saying we’re having dinner at Silver Cloud to say we’re at Silver Cloud and you should come find us.”[58]

Google’s executive chairman and former chief, Eric Schmidt, conceded that Siri could pose a competitive threat to the company’s core search business.[59]

Siri was criticized by pro-choice abortion organizations, including the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU) and NARAL Pro-Choice America, after users found that Siri could not provide information about the location of birth control or abortion providers nearby, sometimes directing users to pro-life crisis pregnancy centers instead.[60][61][62]

Natalie Kerris, a spokeswoman for Apple, told The New York Times:

“Our customers want to use Siri to find out all types of information, and while it can find a lot, it doesn’t always find what you want. … These are not intentional omissions meant to offend anyone. It simply means that as we bring Siri from beta to a final product, we find places where we can do better, and we will in the coming weeks.”[63]

In January 2016, Fast Company reported that, in then-recent months, Siri had begun to confuse the word “abortion” with “adoption”, citing “health experts” who stated that the situation had “gotten worse.” However, at the time of Fast Company’s report, the situation had changed slightly, with Siri offering “a more comprehensive list of Planned Parenthood facilities”, although “Adoption clinics continue to pop up, but near the bottom of the list.”[64][65]

Siri has also not been well received by some English speakers with distinctive accents, including Scottish[66] and Americans from Boston or the South.[67]

In March 2012, Frank M. Fazio filed a class action lawsuit against Apple on behalf of the people who bought iPhone 4S and felt misled about the capabilities of Siri, alleging its failing to function as depicted in Apple’s Siri commercials. Fazio filed the lawsuit in California and claimed that the iPhone 4S was merely a “more expensive iPhone 4” if Siri fails to function as advertised.[68][69] On July 22, 2013, U.S. District Judge Claudia Wilken in San Francisco dismissed the suit but said the plaintiffs could amend at a later time. The reason given for dismissal was that plaintiffs did not sufficiently document enough misrepresentations by Apple for the trial to proceed.[70]

Perceived lack of innovation
In June 2016, The Verge’s Sean O’Kane wrote about the then-upcoming major iOS 10 updates, with a headline stating “Siri’s big upgrades won’t matter if it can’t understand its users”:

“What Apple didn’t talk about was solving Siri’s biggest, most basic flaws: it’s still not very good at voice recognition, and when it gets it right, the results are often clunky. And these problems look even worse when you consider that Apple now has full-fledged competitors in this space: Amazon’s Alexa, Microsoft’s Cortana, and Google’s Assistant.”[71]

Also writing for The Verge, Walt Mossberg had previously questioned Apple’s efforts in cloud-based services, writing:[72]

“… perhaps the biggest disappointment among Apple’s cloud-based services is the one it needs most today, right now: Siri. Before Apple bought it, Siri was on the road to being a robust digital assistant that could do many things, and integrate with many services—even though it was being built by a startup with limited funds and people. After Apple bought Siri, the giant company seemed to treat it as a backwater, restricting it to doing only a few, slowly increasing a number of tasks, like telling you the weather, sports scores, movie and restaurant listings, and controlling the device’s functions. Its unhappy founders have left Apple to build a new AI service called Viv. And, on too many occasions, Siri either gets things wrong, doesn’t know the answer, or can’t verbalize it. Instead, it shows you a web search result, even when you’re not in a position to read it.”

In October 2016, Bloomberg reported that Apple had plans to unify the teams behind its various cloud-based services, including a single campus and reorganized cloud computing resources aimed at improving the processing of Siri’s queries,[73] although another report from The Verge, in June 2017, once again called Siri’s voice recognition “bad.”[74]

In June 2017, The Wall Street Journal published an extensive report on the lack of innovation with Siri following competitors’ advancement in the field of voice assistants. Noting that Apple workers’ anxiety levels “went up a notch” on the announcement of Amazon’s Alexa, the Journal wrote: “Today, Apple is playing catch-up in a product category it invented, increasing worries about whether the technology giant has lost some of its innovation edge.” The report gave the primary causes being Apple’s prioritization of user privacy, including randomly-tagged six-month Siri searches, whereas Google and Amazon keep data until actively discarded by the user and executive power struggles within Apple. Apple did not comment on the report, while Eddy Cue said: “Apple often uses generic data rather than user data to train its systems and has the ability to improve Siri’s performance for individual users with information kept on their iPhones.”[3][75]

Swearing
The iOS version of Siri ships with a vulgar content filter; however, it is disabled by default and must be enabled by the user manually.[76] Therefore, if Siri can be triggered into cursing, broadcasting discriminatory content, and so on, the actions will most likely be carried out. Over its history, multiple methods and techniques have been used to trigger Siri into swearing. The language-filter is not perfect and can still be bypassed.

In 2018, Ars Technica reported a new glitch that could be exploited by a user requesting the definition of “mother” be read out loud. Siri would issue a response and ask the user if they would like to hear the next definition; when the user replies with “yes,” Siri would mention “mother” as being short for “motherfucker.”[77] This resulted in multiple YouTube videos featuring the responses and/or how to trigger them. Apple fixed the issue silently, although it is unconfirmed if the videos specifically brought it to their attention. The content is picked up from third-party sources such as the Oxford English Dictionary and not a supplied message from the corporation.[78] It is unknown whether this glitch was exploited with the vulgar content filter enabled.

Feature film debut

(‘siri’ provided the voice of ‘puter’ in “the lego batman movie”)

*Use Siri on all your Apple devices

Ask Siri to send a message on your iPhone, play your favorite TV show on your Apple TV, or start a workout on your Apple Watch.

Whatever it is, Siri can do it for you — and on any of your Apple devices.

All you have to do is ask.

On iPhone, iPad, or iPod touch

Here are a few ways to talk to Siri.

Say “Hey Siri”

Just say “Hey Siri,” then say what you need.

For example, say “Hey Siri, what’s the weather like today?”

Press and release the button

On iPhone X or later, press the side button for a few moments, then immediately make your request.

If your device has a Home button, press it, then say what you need.

Press and hold the button
Want to make a longer request? On iPhone X or later, press and hold the side button while you make your request. When you release the side button, Siri stops listening.

If your device has a Home button, just press and hold it until you’re finished making your request.

On AirPods, headsets, or in a car
While wearing AirPods, double-tap the outside of either AirPod, wait for a chime, then make your request. With AirPods (2nd generation), you can also say “Hey Siri.”

On other headsets or Bluetooth devices, hold down the center button or call button until you hear a chime, then make your request.

If your vehicle supports CarPlay or Siri Eyes Free, hold down the voice-command button on your steering wheel while you say what you need.

On Apple Watch
Here are a few ways to talk to Siri on your Apple Watch.

Say “Hey Siri”
Look at your Apple Watch or tap its screen. When it wakes, just say “Hey Siri,” then say what you need.

Raise to speak
With the latest version of watchOS and Apple Watch Series 3 or later, you don’t need to say “Hey Siri.” Just hold your watch near your mouth and say what you need.

Hold the Digital Crown
Press the Digital Crown for a few moments, then tell Siri what you need.

Want to make a longer request?

Just press and hold the Digital Crown, say what you need, then release the Digital Crown.

*as of ’27 november 2017* –>

*CNET*

‘sarah jacobsson purewal’

‘jason cipriani’

‘COMPLETE LIST OF ‘SIRI’ COMMANDS’ –>

The complete list of Siri commands

CNET
There’s a lot you can do with Apple’s virtual assistant — and some things you can’t do. For example, while Siri can send texts, search Twitter, and open up your front-facing camera, she can’t adjust your device’s ring volume (something OK Google can do). Complicating the matter, Siri doesn’t work exactly the same way on a Mac as she does on iOS.

Now playing: Siri vs. Google Assistant vs. Bixby
4:46
Apple hasn’t published a complete list of Siri commands, though you can find a fairly comprehensive guide to Siri’s abilities inside Siri herself (open up Siri and say “Help” to see what she can do). So here’s our unofficial guide to Siri commands and questions. Keep in mind, some of the commands will work on a Mac, while some fall flat.

Hey Siri
There are a few ways to get Siri’s attention.

Press and hold the home button to activate Siri and issue her a command or ask her a question. iPhone X users will need to hold in the side button
If you’re using Apple’s Earpods, press and hold the center button to activate Siri and issue her a command or ask her a question.
If you’re using Apple’s AirPods, double-tap on either ‘pod to activate Siri and issue her a command or ask her a question.
If you have Hey Siri enabled and an iPhone 6 or earlier, say “Hey, Siri” when your iPhone is plugged in and charging, followed by a command or question. Those who own an iPhone 6S or newer, “Hey, Siri” works regardless if the phone is plugged in.
On a Mac, you can create a dedicated keyboard shortcut to bring up Siri, use a trick to enable “Hey Siri,” or click on the Siri icon in the menu bar to issue a command or ask a question.
The basics
Call or FaceTime someone. Ex.: “Call Sarah,” or “FaceTime Mom.”
Start a call on speakerphone. Ex.””Call Mom on speaker.”
Call an emergency number. Ex.: “Call 911,” or “Call the fire department.”
Check voice mail. Ex.: “Do I have any new voice mail?” or “Play the voice mail from Mom.”
Text someone. Ex.: “Tell [name] I am on my way,” or “Tell [name] I am going to the store.”
Send an email. Ex.: “Send email to [name] about [subject] and say [message].”
Hear your messages or emails read aloud. Ex.: “Read my new messages,” or “Check email.”
Set a timer. Ex.: “Set the timer for 10 minutes.”
Check the weather. Ex.: “What’s the weather like today?” or “Do I need an umbrella?”
Check stocks. Ex.: “What’s Apple’s stock price?” or “Where’s the NASDAQ today?”
Conversions (of all kinds). Ex.: “How many cups are in a quart?” or “How many dollars are in a Euro?” or “How many pounds are in a stone?”
Calculate tips. Ex.: “What is a 20 percent tip on $68?”
Solve math problems. Ex.: “What is 234 divided by 6?” or “What is the square root of 16?”
Phone and settings
Take a picture.
Take a selfie.
Turn on/off [Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, Cellular Data, Airplane Mode, Do Not Disturb, Night Shift]
Increase/decrease brightness.
Open [app].
Designate contacts as relationships. Ex.: “My mom is Sandy Jacobsson,” or “Timmy Jacobsson is my brother.” Once a relationship is established, you can say relationships instead of names (e.g., “Call my brother,” instead of “Call Timmy Jacobsson”).
Adjust music volume. Ex.: “Adjust volume to 80 percent,” or “Turn the volume up/down.”
“How much free space to I have?” (Mac specific)
Scheduling and reminders
Schedule or cancel a meeting. Ex.: “Schedule a meeting with [name] tomorrow at 11:30 a.m.” or “Cancel my 5 p.m. appointment.”
What appointments do I have tomorrow?
Set location-aware reminders. Ex.: “Remind me to remember my keys when I leave,” or “Remind me to feed the dog when I get home.”
Find out the date and day of the week of holidays. Ex.: “When is Easter?” or “When is Labor Day?”
Set alarms. Ex.: “Set an alarm for 1 a.m.” or “Set an alarm for six hours from now.”
Delete/turn off all alarms. Ex. “Delete all alarms” or “Turn off all alarms.”
Check the number of days between dates. Ex.: “How many days until October 6?” or “How many days between April 3 and June 16?”
Find out what time it is in another city. Ex.: “What time is it in Tokyo?”
Search
Define [word].
What is a synonym for [word]?
What’s the etymology of [word]?
Find photos. Ex.: “Show me photos from last week,” or “Show me my selfies,” or “Show me photos from Tokyo.”
Search Twitter. Ex.: “What’s Kylie Jenner saying,” “Search Twitter for [keyword],” or “What’s trending on Twitter?”
Find specific notes or emails. Ex.: “Find my note about [keyword],” or “Find emails about [keyword].”
Find your friends (if you have “Find My Friends” set up). Ex.: “Where is Ron?” or “Who is near me?”
Find pictures of [keyword].
Find apps. Ex.: “Get the Twitter app,” or “Search the App Store for word games.”
Search for Word/PDF/PowerPoint/etc. in my Download/My Documents/etc. folder. Ex.: “Show all PowerPoint presentations in my school folder.” (Mac specific)
Navigation
Take me home.
What’s traffic like on the way home?
Find [driving, walking, transit] directions to [destination].
How do I get to [destination] by [walking, bus, bike, car, train, etc.]?
Where is [business name]?
Where is the nearest [business type]?
Find out how long until you arrive. Ex.: “What’s my ETA?”
How much does gas cost right now?
Entertainment
Sports updates. Ex.: “Did the Tigers win?” or “What was the score the last time the Tigers played the Yankees?” or “How did the Tigers do last night?”
Info about a sport or sports team. Ex.: “What basketball games are on today?” or “Get me college football rankings” or “Show me the roster for the Red Wings.”
Find movie times and locations. Ex.: “What’s playing at Regal L.A. Live?” or “What are some movies playing near me?” or “Is [movie name] playing near me?”

Find out what song is playing in the room

(through Shazam)

Ex.: “What song is this?”

What’s the synopsis of [movie name]?
Music and Apple Music
Basic controls: Play, pause/stop, skip/next, play previous song.
Play [artist] or [song name] or or [album].
“Play some music” to begin a custom Apple Music radio station
‘Like’ the song you’re listening to. Ex.: “Like this song.”
Shuffle my playlist.
Choose the next song. Ex.: “After this, play Wildest Dreams.”
Find chart-toppers from certain years. Ex.: “Play the top songs from 2013.”
Play songs that are similar to the one you’re listening to. Ex.: “Play more like this.”
What song is this?
Buy this song.
Travel
Check flight status. Ex.: “Check flight status of [airline and flight number]”
Find restaurants and make reservations. Ex.: “What’s a good Chinese restaurant near me?” or “Make a reservation at Baco Mercat for 7 p.m.” or “Find a table for six in San Francisco tonight.”
Find a business’ hours. Ex.: “How late is [business name] open?” or “Is [business name] open right now?”
Learn about the area you’re in. Ex.: “What’s the nearest museum?” or “Where am I?” or “What bridge is this?”
Translation
Starting with iOS 11, Siri can translate five different languages: French, German, Mandarin, Spanish and Italian. Using the new feature is as easy as asking, “How do you say [word or phrase] in [language]?” For example: “How do you say where is the bathroom in French?”

Siri will then read the translation out loud. You’ll see the text on the screen alongside a play button, which you can use to replay the translation.

Third-party apps
Beginning with iOS 10, developers have been able to integrate their apps into Siri. Meaning, you can use voice commands to do things such as send WhatsApp messages, request an Uber or send money via Square Cash. You can view and customize which apps are granted access to Siri on your device under Settings > Siri > App Support.

Pay Joe 10 dollars with Square Cash/PayPal/etc.
Send a message using WhatsApp/LinkedIn/Skype/WeChat/etc.
Call me an Uber/Lyft/etc.
Show me photos in [app name].
Show me pins/creations in [app name].
Random tips and tricks
Find out what airplanes are currently flying above you. Ex.: “What airplanes are above me?”
Roll a die or roll two dice.
Flip a coin.
What is your favorite color?
Tell me a joke.
What does the fox say?
Knock knock.
Who’s on first?
Why did the chicken cross the road?
What is zero divided by zero?
Learn how to say my name.
Editor’s Note: This post was originally published April 12, 2016.

It has been updated to reflect new commands and capabilities

Siri analyzes how you use your device to provide personalized suggestions and better search results using local, on-device processing

Siri learns how you use your devices in order to personalize your experience.

Using information stored on your device, such as your Safari browsing history, emails, messages, and contacts, as well as information contributed by other installed apps, Siri can provide suggestions in Spotlight, Look Up, News, Photos Memories, and more using local, on-device processing.

You can see the full list of features that Siri personalizes in the Siri section of System Preferences, under Siri Suggestions & Privacy.

Personalization is synced across your devices with end-to-end encryption

Siri securely syncs this information among your devices, to make your experience consistent on all of them. This sync is done using end-to-end encryption.

To make suggestions and search results more relevant, some information is sent to Apple and not associated with you

In some cases, such as when you use Siri Suggestions in Spotlight, Look Up, or Safari, generalized topics of interest that Siri has learned may be sent to Apple to make your searches more relevant. These topics of interest (for example, cooking or basketball) will help to give you more relevant search results, and we use privacy-friendly techniques to disassociate these topics of interest from you.

In addition to these topics of interest, when you perform a search, your device sends your search queries, suggestions you have selected, and related usage data to Apple to process your request. This information is not associated with you. Search results that show files and content on your device will not be sent.

If you have Location Services on your device turned on, the location of your device will be sent to Apple to provide more relevant recommendations. To provide you with more relevant music and video suggestions, if your device can access music or video subscription services, then information such as the names of the subscription services and types of subscriptions may be sent to Apple. Your account name, number and password will not be sent to Apple. Location, search queries, your interests, and usage information sent to Apple will only be used by Apple to make Suggestions more relevant and to improve other Apple products and services.

To improve search results, words and phrases collected over time from common searches may be forwarded from Apple to a web search engine.

You have choice and control

If you do not want Siri Suggestions to send your information to Apple, you can turn off Siri Suggestions. You may do so under System Preferences, select Spotlight and deselect the checkbox Spotlight Suggestions and Spotlight Suggestions in Lookup. Safari Suggestions can be turned off in Safari. Open Safari, select the Safari menu and choose Preferences, click on Search, and toggle off Include Safari Suggestions.

You can stop apps from contributing information to personalize Siri. Go to System Preferences, click Siri, then select Siri Suggestions & Privacy. Deselect the checkbox for an App.

You can turn off Location Services for Siri Suggestions. To do so, open System Preferences, click Security & Privacy, select Location Services in the Privacy tab, click the lock to make changes and enter your password, select Details next to System Services, and deselect Location-Based Suggestions. If you turn off Location Services on your device, your precise location will not be sent to Apple. To deliver relevant search suggestions, Apple may use the IP address of your Internet connection to approximate your location by matching it to a geographic region.

If you do not want Siri personalization to sync across your devices, you can disable Siri under iCloud settings.

At all times, information collected by Apple will be treated in accordance with Apple’s Privacy Policy, which can be found at www.apple.com/privacy

www.apple.com /privacy/

Privacy

8-10 minutes

Privacy is a fundamental human right. At Apple, it’s also one of our core values. Your devices are important to so many parts of your life. What you share from those experiences, and who you share it with, should be up to you. We design Apple products to protect your privacy and give you control over your information. It’s not always easy. But that’s the kind of innovation we believe in.

Your data.
Your choice.

Starting in early 2021, you get greater control over how apps track you. Learn about the practices of the data collection industry to see what having more choice means for you.

View A Day in the Life of Your Data (PDF)

Safari throws trackers off your trail.

Intelligent Tracking Prevention helps stop advertisers that follow you from site to site.

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Safari

Some websites allow hundreds of different data collection companies to watch you, build a profile of you, and serve you ads as you browse the web. Intelligent Tracking Prevention in Safari uses on-device machine learning to help block those trackers. And you can get a snapshot of all the cross-site trackers Safari is blocking by visiting your Privacy Report in the Safari toolbar.

Advertisers can also create a “fingerprint” of your device to target you based on characteristics like your browser configuration, and fonts and plug-ins you’ve installed. To help prevent this, Safari has built-in fingerprinting defense, which shares a simplified system profile with websites you visit. Making it even more difficult for data companies to identify you.

Maps makes your location history, history.

The Maps app doesn’t associate your data with your Apple ID, and Apple doesn’t keep a history of where you’ve been.

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Maps

Where you go says a lot about you. Maps delivers a great experience without Apple knowing which stores, neighborhoods, or clinics you visit. And because Maps doesn’t include a sign-in, where you go isn’t associated with your Apple ID at all.

Personalized features, like locating your parked car, are created right on your device. Data used to improve navigation, such as routes and search terms, is not associated with your identity. Instead, that information is based on random identifiers that are constantly changing.

Photos protects your images from unwanted exposure.

The Photos app uses machine learning to organize photos right on your device. So you don’t need to share them with Apple or anyone else.

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Photos

Your photo and video albums are full of precious moments, friends, and your favorite things. Apple devices are designed so those memories don’t leave your hands until you share them.

Some services process photos in the cloud, which gives them access to your photos. But we designed Photos to process your images right on your Mac, iPhone, and iPad. In fact, the Apple Neural Engine with the A13 and A14 Bionic chips performs over 100 billion operations per photo to recognize faces and places without ever leaving your device. And when apps request access to your photos, you can share just the images you want — not your entire library.

Messages are only seen by who you send them to.

Apple can’t read your iMessages while they’re being sent between you and the person you’re texting.

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Messages

From inside jokes to invitations, a lot of life happens in text and video chats. Every blue-bubble message, picture, Animoji, and video is encrypted while being sent between devices.

Smart suggestions in Messages, like pulling up photos to send based on who you’re messaging, are all done on your device.

Siri learns what you need. Not who you are.

Your Apple ID isn’t connected to Siri, and your requests are associated with a random identifier. Not you.

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Siri

Siri was designed from the beginning to learn your preferences without sharing your identity with Apple or anyone else. You don’t sign in with your Apple ID to use Siri, and your device processes as much information as possible without sending it to Apple’s servers.

When Apple does process or store data on our servers, it’s associated with a random identifier — a long string of letters and numbers. That data is used only to improve Siri, and we never share or sell it. Apple doesn’t retain audio of your requests unless you choose to share it with us to improve Siri.

Apple News leaves what you read off the record.

Apple News delivers content based on your interests, but it isn’t connected to your identity. So Apple doesn’t know what you’ve read.

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Apple News

Many news sources keep track of your identity and create a profile of you. Apple News delivers personalized content without knowing who you are. The content you read is associated with a random identifier, not your Apple ID.

You get editor-curated content and a personalized newsfeed so you can stay up to date with the latest news and stories. And because Apple News uses machine learning, the more you use it, the better your app gets to know what you like — without Apple ever knowing what you’re into.

Wallet and Apple Pay help hide what you buy.

Your credit and debit card numbers are hidden from Apple, and Apple doesn’t keep transaction information that can be tied back to you.

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Wallet & Apple Pay

What you buy, where you bought it, and how much you paid is sensitive information. Apple doesn’t store, sell, or use that information.

Apple doesn’t store your credit or debit card numbers or share them with merchants. Instead, a unique Device Account Number is created every time you add a card to Apple Pay. And with Apple Card, your spending history is generated right on your iPhone, so only the bank has that history.

Health keeps your records under wraps.

You control which information goes into the Health app and who you share it with.

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Health

From your heart rate to your menstrual cycle, apps and devices for your health can give you insight into some of your most personal details. With the Health app, you’re in charge of what information you’d like to include, what not to, and who has access to it.

All of your data is encrypted and only accessible with your passcode, Touch ID, or Face ID.

So however you use the Health app, you’re always in control of your data.

New

App Store shows you what’s in store for your data.

Easy-to-read summaries on the App Store help you choose apps based on how they use your data and whether they track you.

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App Store

Every one of the more than 1.8 million apps on the App Store is required to follow strict privacy guidelines and report how it uses your data.

And every app is rigorously reviewed by a team of experts at Apple.

When you’re checking out an app, you’ll get a summary of privacy practices to help you decide if it works for you.

Apps you choose to download need your permission to access information like your photos or location — and you can always change your mind about what you share

Starting in early 2021, iOS 14 and iPadOS 14 will require developers to get your permission before tracking your activity across other companies‘ apps and websites for ads or data brokers

Siri is a new feature introduced in macOS 10.12.

This application allows the user to interact with it to

ask questions,