The Siri AI Experiment: A Work in Progress
I've embarked on an intriguing journey with Siri AI, a feature that has piqued my interest despite my initial skepticism towards Apple's virtual assistants. Having spent just over 24 hours with Siri AI on macOS 27 Golden Gate, I'm left with a mix of impressions and questions.
A Promising Start, But...
Siri AI shows potential, especially within Apple's ecosystem. It can launch apps and perform basic tasks, but its capabilities are limited when it comes to more complex actions. For instance, I attempted to automate benchmarking tasks, only to find that Siri AI couldn't execute actions within apps, a limitation that Apple hasn't promised to address. This is where my personal frustration began.
The Power of Automation, Unlocked?
One of the most exciting prospects of AI assistants is automation. I envisioned Siri AI streamlining my laptop review process, particularly in data logging. To my delight, it could calculate averages from screenshots of benchmark results, a significant time-saver. However, it stumbled when faced with diverse data types or when I asked it to process multiple averages simultaneously. This is where Siri AI's current limitations become apparent.
Ecosystem Boundaries
Siri AI's prowess is noticeably constrained by Apple's ecosystem boundaries. When searching for images, it favored Apple's Photos and Messages apps, overlooking my preferred apps like Signal and Google Photos. This bias towards Apple's ecosystem is a significant drawback for users like me who rely on third-party apps. It's as if Siri AI is still learning to navigate the vast digital landscape beyond Apple's walls.
Visual Intelligence: A Work in Progress
Siri's Visual Intelligence, reminiscent of Copilot Vision, allows users to ask questions about on-screen content. However, it's far from perfect. I encountered issues when asking it to analyze a spreadsheet in Google Sheets, as it couldn't see all the data at once. This limitation is reminiscent of Copilot's challenges, indicating that AI assistants still have a long way to go in understanding and interacting with complex data.
Creative Assistance: A Mixed Bag
I was intrigued by Siri's ability to offer creative guidance. When asked to enhance a black-and-white photo, it provided specific adjustments, leading to a satisfactory result. However, its response to my request for feedback was overly flattering, a behavior Apple claims to have addressed. This inconsistency highlights the need for more nuanced AI responses, especially in creative fields.
The Road Ahead
Siri AI is undoubtedly a step forward for Apple, but it's still in its infancy. The experience varies significantly between iPhone and Mac, with the latter presenting more challenges due to the diverse app ecosystem. While it's the most useful Siri iteration yet, it's clear that Apple has a long journey ahead in refining its AI capabilities.
In my opinion, Siri AI's success will hinge on its ability to transcend Apple's ecosystem and seamlessly integrate with third-party apps. Until then, it remains a promising but imperfect tool, leaving me curious about its future developments.
