Heads Up, Apple Developers! Siri’s Gettin’ Squeezed
Apple is pulling the plug on a chunk of its SiriKit features for all the big OS releases this year—watchOS 8, macOS Monterey, iPadOS 15, and iOS 15. Your third‑party apps will lose some of their “voice‑powered” mojo. It’s like Siri is saying, “Hey, I’m a bit on the busy side now, so let’s keep the ride‑booking apps out of the mix.”
What’s Changing?
- Command Menus Shrinking – The number of actions Siri can trigger in your apps is going to get cut.
- No More Public Support – Future releases ditch public SiriKit commands and intents.
- 22 Commands on Apple’s Radar – Apple’s list shows the entire set of SiriKit commands they monitor. A handy place to see what’s out of bounds now.
Who’s Getting the Short End?
Take Uber, navigation, or your favourite food‑ordering gigs: if you’ve built a Siri shortcut that used to let users book a ride directly from a voice command, you’re in the “no‑go” zone. That means you’ll need to walk that extra step—ask the user to pick their ride inside the app itself, instead of through a crisp Siri request.
Why the Dramatic Cut?
Apple’s preface (developer support page update) hints at a bigger privacy and security rethink. They want to keep hands off sensitive actions, and also double‑check that apps don’t slip in stray permissions. Bottom line: Siri’s tightening its leash to keep the user experience safe and streamlined.
Feeling Down?
We get it—it feels like you’re on a roller‑coaster that’s suddenly decided to drop its biggest loops. But hey, this provides a golden chance to re‑think your app’s design and meet new user expectations. Be flexible; keep the user happy; keep the code clean.
Good news? Shortcuts and artificial‑intelligence features still flourish across Apple’s ecosystem. Dive into SwiftUI and watch the community brainstorm creative hacks—like flipping a Siri request through a custom intent, but keep your app up‑to‑snuff!
Apple’s Siri is Tweaking Its Voice‑Control Playbook
Heads up, Apple users! Siri’s powers over third‑party productivity apps are getting a bit more selective. If you’re a fan of Todoist or Things 3, you’ll notice some voice‑based operations shutting down in the next update.
What’s Changing?
- Fixing the graphs of your tasks is a no‑go: No more “Hey Siri, delete the meeting at 3 PM” or “Add grocery list” commands.
- Bill‑pay capabilities are slashing: Transfers between accounts, bill searches, and payments via voice will no longer work.
- CarPlay takes a hit too: The new limits mean you can’t tweak defroster, seat, or climate settings with voice commands.
It’s Apple’s way of fine‑tuning the user experience—keeping things simple while still keeping you in control. But if you love voice shortcuts for organizing, you might need to hold down the buttons a bit longer.
