MAKE APPLE GREAT AGAIN: Siri, explain how you became Apple’s most embarrassing failure.
According to Bloomberg, Apple executives told staff that the delays were “embarrassing” and “ugly”, and said the company had promoted the Siri revamp before it was ready.
Robby Walker, a senior director at Apple, pointed the finger at the company’s marketing team for seeking to promote the features ahead of time. A week later, Giannandrea was reportedly sidelined, with Mike Rockwell, the head of the Vision Pro headset, put in charge of Siri.
The uncharacteristic own-goal led to a wave of criticism. John Gruber, a long-time Apple follower, said that “something is rotten” at the company, while Ming-Chi Kuo, a well-connected analyst, said Cook should apologise.
Apple is now facing a false advertising lawsuit from customers who said they bought new iPhones on the premise that they would receive features such as the new Siri. Apple has not yet responded to the lawsuit.
Mr Chatterjee, of Forrester, says: “There is cause for concern but not for panic.”
He says the company has plenty of loyal customers, but that the company’s recent challenges have dimmed hopes of an upgrade “super cycle” to boost sales.
The problems getting Siri to work might be understandable in isolation, but they come amid a series of Apple initiatives that have missed the mark.
The company invested billions of pounds into an electric car project that it eventually scrapped a year ago.
Its Vision Pro headset – the company’s biggest new idea since the iPhone – has disappointed, with plans for an upgraded model reportedly in flux.
But ChatGPT 4o can now make Ghibli cartoons at the drop of a text prompt – isn’t that enough of a bleeding edge 21st century high-tech breakthrough for one week?!
