It seems that Apple users will soon be able to use a shorter phrase when addressing Siri. The feature has been available for a long time now, but it always requires users to say ‘Hey Siri.’ Now, the company is working on making the system respond to just ‘Siri,’ which is surprisingly more difficult than one can imagine.

The information comes from a report created by Mark Gurman from Bloomberg. According to Gurman, this feature has been in development for several months now. While it may seem easy to simply remove one word from the phrase, the process involves extensive testing and training of the AI. Based on the available information, users will get access to the upgraded feature either in 2023 or already in 2024.

Apple is currently tweaking the feature so that it works smoothly. The way the company ensures that the system will respond correctly to ‘Siri’ is by implementing AI training to pick up on different dialects and accents. With the ‘Hey Siri’ phrase, it was easier for the Apple system to recognize the words, and it will take a while for the new function to be introduced to all users.

One of the probable reasons why Apple decided to focus on this feature is to keep up with the update of Amazon’s Alexa. Previously, the feature could be accessed by saying ‘Hey Alexa,’ but the company managed to shorten it to just ‘Alexa.’

The update will include more than just the trigger phrase. Based on Gurman's report, Apple is also working on integrating Siri into third-party services and apps. Also, to be more inclusive and improve voice recognition, Apple made some changes to their voice assistant and recorded a voice of a member of the LGBTQ+ community.

What do you think about this upcoming update? Do you consider it necessary? Please, share your thoughts in the comments!