Apple and the European Commission are seeking a compromise regarding Siri AI. The revamped AI assistant will not be coming to the EU for now because Apple disagrees with the DMA.
Siri AI was the big announcement during the recent edition of Apple WWDC, although iOS and iPadOS users in the EU will have to wait for now. Apple decided to bring its revamped AI assistant to all corners of the planet, except Europe. According to the Financial Times, ‘constructive talks’ are underway between outgoing Apple CEO Tim Cook and European Commissioner Henna Virkunnen to smooth things over.
Second catch-up maneuver
During WWDC, Apple did not shy away from grand words for Siri AI. The revamped version of the AI assistant that has lived on your iPhone since 2011 has deep access to data and apps on your device to proactively retrieve information. For example, if you want to navigate and pass by a friend, Siri will retrieve that friend’s address from your contacts itself and map out a route in Apple Maps that takes this into account. Siri AI also understands what is happening on your screen, so you can ask for extra clarification regarding your photos.
It’s all not as revolutionary as Apple likes to make it sound. It might be heresy to say, but what Apple wants to achieve with Siri AI, Google is already doing with Gemini in Android. Within Android, Gemini is increasingly asserting itself as an omnipresent personal assistant, interfering both appropriately and inappropriately with what you are doing on your screen.
Still, Apple has every reason to make a big deal out of Siri AI. The iPhone maker is often seen as a laggard in the AI race. The launch of Siri AI is intended to convince friend and foe, but especially investors, that Apple is indeed a player. After Apple Intelligence, Siri AI is Apple’s second catch-up maneuver.
DMA’s fault
Apple is deliberately ignoring the European Union. After all, different rules apply to tech companies on the European continent than elsewhere. The Digital Markets Act, cursed by tech giants, dictates that Apple and others may not wall off their ecosystems and/or use them to promote other services.
The fact that Siri AI would have access to everything on your phone is not a problem according to the legislation. However, Apple would then also have to grant third-party chatbots that same access. Apple is not interested in that, officially because it would compromise the security and privacy of the iOS ecosystem. Google has also already been rapped over the knuckles for favoring Gemini in Android.
Compromise
Apple explicitly cites the DMA as the reason why it cannot bring Siri AI to the European Union for the time being. It receives support in this from its loyal fans on the continent. According to the Financial Times, EU parliamentarians have received abusive emails and even death threats in recent weeks.
Fortunately, Cook and his team are choosing a more diplomatic approach, although the right compromise has yet to be found. At the end of 2025, Apple proposed a Trusted System Agent, a piece of software that Apple would place between its operating system and external AI models to regulate access to data on devices. However, no progress has been made on that to date.
In any case, Apple should not count on major concessions from the Commission. It previously requested an 18-month delay on its interoperability obligations under the DMA law, but the Commission is not granting anyone a ‘vacation’, not even a company with a market value of 4.5 trillion dollars. Apple is now negotiating with the Commission to reach a compromise to roll out Siri AI as much as possible on its own terms, without risking fines.
History repeats itself
Squabbling between Apple and the European Commission over the DMA is gradually becoming a recurring phenomenon with every new product launch from the company. Apple has positioned itself as a staunch opponent of the legislation since day one, sometimes using creative ways to express that dissatisfaction. Apple Intelligence also launched with a delay in Europe. The European Commission has stood its ground just as long.
The same arguments are heard from Cupertino every time. Apple claims it cannot fulfill the obligations imposed on it without endangering its users. The company only trusts itself within its ecosystem, which it has walled off for years. The DMA would therefore only be bad for consumers, who are denied the latest technology as a result. The fact that the walled-off ecosystem has served Apple very well is subtly left unmentioned.
If history repeats itself, Siri AI will eventually roll out to the EU as well. Ultimately, the success of Apple’s AI plans will be judged by the number of users it can convince. The market share of 34 percent iOS users in the EU is too interesting to ignore completely. We aren’t being completely excluded, by the way: Siri AI is available via macOS, but exclusively in English.