Apple Inc.’s top executive overseeing its Siri virtual assistant told staff that delays to key features have been ugly and embarrassing, and a decision to publicly promote the technology before it was ready made matters worse.

Adding a voice assistant to the iPhone in 2011 was prescient. Since then, Siri hasn’t seemed able to catch a break. Why should that change now? Before I go any further, a programming note: On Thursday,

Siri has undergone some improvements thanks to Apple Intelligence, such as a new visual cue for when the assistant is active on the iPhone. When talking to the assistant on an iPhone 15 Pro or later, you can correct yourself in mid-sentence without confusing Siri and you can ask follow-up questions.

The company is aiming to get some of the AI-powered features announced last June into iOS 19 — but it’s not guaranteed.

Apple is reassuring employees on the Siri team who may be feeling demotivated by the recent Siri delays and the bad press surrounding

The whole details of a Siri team meeting chaired by senior director Robby Walker, who is in charge of the division, made the harsh remarks and is available at Bloomberg. He referred to the delay as an “ugly” scenario and expressed empathy for staff members who could be feeling exhausted or irritated by Apple’s choices and Siri’s still-unimpressive reputation further stating that the team was going through a difficult time.