Apple’s AI delays put its smart home ambitions on the back burner

The news: Apple delaying its AI-enhanced Siri voice assistant could push back plans to release smart home and wearable services and devices.

The change affects a wider Apple Intelligence rollout and raises doubts about Apple’s ability to compete with Google and Amazon in AI products.

The reason for the delay? Apple’s executives found the features didn’t work as advertised in their internal testing. 

Renovation on hold: Apple is postponing its iPad-HomePod smart hub and broader smart home plans due to delayed AI features. And some Apple AI employees are under the impression that work on these features could be abandoned altogether, forcing them to rebuild new functionality from scratch.

The problem is that Siri is the default control interface for all of Apple’s non-touch products, including Vision Pro headsets, HomeKit smart home devices, and any future smart glasses. It’s vital to Apple’s expansion in all of those markets.

Smart home showdown: 51% of US Gen Zers and 70% of millennials interact with AI-enabled assistants daily, per ThinkNow Research. Rivals like Google and Amazon have a sizable lead in productizing AI within smart home products, and delays are pushing Apple further behind. 

• Google is adding Gemini AI features to Google Home behind Nest Home Aware subscriptions, per The Verge.
• Announced last month, Amazon’s Alexa+ will update some Echo devices to create smart home routines, order groceries, and analyze images. 

Our take: If Apple doesn’t accelerate AI deployment, it risks losing Gen Z and millennial consumers who are already adopting AI-enabled assistants from its biggest rivals. 

Expanding its partnership with AI companies like OpenAI and Google could fill gaps in the short term, but it needs to address internal development problems to get back on track.