Apple has finally taken a significant step towards revamping its digital assistant, Siri, with the launch of iOS 18.1. The update, powered by Apple Intelligence, the company's generative AI offering, brings a slew of new features and updates to Siri, making it a more intelligent and capable assistant.

One of the most notable updates is Siri's enhanced language understanding, allowing users to communicate with the assistant in a more natural way. Siri can now understand follow-up questions without requiring context repetition, making interactions more seamless. Additionally, users can now type to Siri when they prefer not to speak out loud, a feature that's particularly useful in quiet or loud environments.

Siri has also gained product knowledge, enabling it to provide step-by-step instructions on how to use Apple devices and services. This means users can ask Siri for help with features they're unfamiliar with, making it a more valuable resource.

While these features are available with the iOS 18.1 update, Apple has promised even more exciting updates in the pipeline. Soon, Siri will be able to tap into OpenAI's ChatGPT to answer complex questions, and will become aware of users' personal context, enabling it to take actions unique to each individual. The assistant will also gain onscreen awareness, allowing it to understand what's on users' screens and take action accordingly.

These updates mark a significant shift in Apple's approach to AI and digital assistants, and are likely to have a profound impact on the tech industry as a whole. With Siri becoming more intelligent and capable, Apple is poised to regain its footing in the AI assistant space, and the startup community will be watching closely to see how these developments unfold.