After nearly two years of delays and a $2.5 million lawsuit settlement, Apple is preparing to officially relaunch a significantly revamped next-generation Siri at the upcoming WWDC 2026. Bloomberg News reporter Mark Gurman recently...discloseThis early preview and design of iOS 27 further explains how Apple is redesigning the iPhone's system interface around the new Siri and how it will...Driven by Google Gemini modelThe AI agent is being pushed to the core of the entire system.
Reshaping iPhone navigation logic: Siri joins the Dynamics Island, and a new standalone chat app is added.
The most noticeable change in the leaked design drawings is that the core of Siri interaction has been moved to the Dynamic Island.
• The brand-new "Search or Ask a Question" interface:In addition to traditional voice activation or long-pressing the power button, users can swipe down from the top center of the iPhone screen to bring up the new integrated "Search or Ask" interface. This interface integrates existing search elements, retaining the "Siri suggestions" for eight recommended apps, and allowing users to issue complex commands directly from this interface, such as launching apps, sending text messages, creating calendar events, or collecting notes.
• Dynamic island cards and chat extensions:All search and question results will pop up from the Dynamic Island as rich text cards. If users need a deeper conversation, they can simply swipe down further to seamlessly enter the new Siri App's "Chatbot Mode" for a conversation.
• Major changes to the operation logic:Because Siri occupies the top center of the screen for swiping gestures, in iOS 27, users must swipe down from the top left corner of the screen to bring up the original Notification Center.
• Standalone Siri App Takes on the Challenge:Apple will be launching a dedicated Siri app to directly compete with mainstream products like ChatGPT and Claude. This app supports full text and voice input, allows users to upload photos and documents for multimodal analysis, and even features a history chat function to help users continue past discussions.
• Open third-party models:The report also points out that Apple is considering providing users with flexible options in this new interface that allow them to freely switch or access other top third-party AI services, including ChatGPT, Claude, and Google Gemini.
Deepen the camera and album: Visual intelligence and "magic image expansion" come to fruition.
Unsurprisingly, Apple will also further integrate the multimodal capabilities of the new Siri into the camera and photo album ecosystem.
Regarding cameras, a brand-new dedicated mode will be launched to completely replace the existing "Visual Intelligence" function. After taking a photo, users can either directly send it to Siri to perform a reverse search on Google Images, or freely authorize a third-party AI agent to conduct in-depth analysis of the photo's content.
Regarding the Photos app, iOS 27 will introduce two generative AI tools: Reframe and Extend. As the names suggest, users can not only change the shooting angle of photos, but also use AI algorithms to automatically and seamlessly generate and fill in visual elements that extend beyond the original camera frame.
Connecting the screen before and after: A private assistant with more "agent" characteristics
The core underlying this new interface is a truly smarter version of Siri that proactively solves problems.
The new Siri can not only search the internet instantly, but more importantly, it has the ability to "understand screen context" and "read user personal information," thereby completing complex tasks across applications. Mark Gurman pointed out that in Apple's planned workflow, before scheduling a new activity, users can directly ask Siri, "What free time do I have?" The system will automatically compare the calendar, identify any overlapping or conflicting events, and complete the scheduling on the device.
By completely loosening system permissions, Apple is transforming the iPhone into a "hardware shell for the Gemini."
Judging from the interface changes and functional layout of iOS 27 that have been leaked so far, this is undoubtedly the most radical and justifiable software innovation that Apple has made to the iPhone system ecosystem since the introduction of widgets in iOS 14.
The reason this is considered radical is that Apple, in pursuit of AI, has modified navigation gestures that users have long ingrained (relegating the swipe-based Live Island to Siri and relocating the Notification Center to the top left corner). This indicates that, in the eyes of Apple's top management, the importance of "search and AI-generated questions" on mobile devices has officially surpassed that of traditional notification viewing. Furthermore, the launch of the standalone Siri app and the redesign of the Live Island card-based UI are all aimed at connecting the previously fragmented app islands of the iPhone with a single AI thread.
The reason why it is said to be understandable is because Apple's lack of research and development in the underlying Large Language Model (LLM).
Earlier this year, Apple confirmed it would introduce the Google Gemini model to give the new Siri a "soul." While Siri's ability to read screen content, user data, and use Gemini's intelligence to plan schedules and reply to messages significantly enhances the on-device smart experience on the iPhone, essentially Apple is essentially giving away its prized hardware and system core.Give it to Google.
Considering that Apple even plans to allow users to choose ChatGPT and Claude in the interface, the iPhone at the end of 2026, although bearing the Apple brand, is more like a highly sophisticated "premium hardware shell" tailored for the implementation of various AI agent services at the system level.
How Apple will convince the market that it retains sovereignty over the AI ecosystem at the upcoming WWDC 2026 will be a very interesting point to watch.
