During a conference call to discuss its most recent quarterly earnings on Thursday, Apple indicated that heavy users of its redesigned Siri may need to pay for upgraded iCloud services to access certain capabilities.
Chief Executive Officer Tim Cook said the company is still developing its approach to cover the higher compute costs associated with the AI-enhanced voice assistant. "We do believe there will be people that want to use it a lot, and so we will have some kind of upgrade possibilities on iCloud+," Cook said during the earnings call.
Apple has also stated that a new home security feature built into the next version of iOS will require a paid iCloud subscription.
The company unveiled the long-delayed Siri upgrade at its developer conference in June. A public beta began this month, and broad availability is expected in the fall alongside new iPhone models.
Cook pointed to positive early reviews of the updated Siri and said they "underscore our philosophy that building AI that is private and based on personal context can change how users find information and get things done with our products in a way that truly enriches their lives."
Reports from Bloomberg and others have suggested that usage of some features in the new iPhone operating system could require a paid iCloud subscription. Apple is also relying in part on Google Gemini models to help power the new Siri.
This is a developing story; further updates may follow.
