iOS 27 to introduce standalone Siri app with auto-delete history; reportedly powered by Gemini

The standalone Siri app marks Apple's biggest assistant rework since 2011. Unlike today's overlay-and-handoff Siri, the new app functions as a persistent agent surface — users open it, give it multi-step tasks (book travel, summarize email threads, draft documents) and Siri orchestrates calls across other apps via the Apple Intelligence framework. The auto-delete privacy controls (30 days, one year, or never) are Apple's competitive differentiator versus ChatGPT and Gemini's default-retain posture.

The Gemini-under-the-hood reporting is the more provocative thread. Apple's agreement with Google explicitly stipulates that Gemini will not train on Siri data — addressing the obvious privacy concern — and a previously disclosed search-deal-style commercial structure. The arrangement effectively gives Apple a frontier model without owning frontier R&D, while letting Google extend Gemini's distribution to roughly a billion iOS devices.

Competitive context: Apple sat out the I/O week of news but has WWDC (June 8) as its counter-stage. The Siri redesign is part of a broader iOS 27 AI push including the rolled-out Live Recognition accessibility feature (announced this week) and an updated Reader. Apple Intelligence has been criticized for slow rollout and capability gaps; outsourcing the foundation model while owning the on-device privacy layer is a pragmatic reset.

Skeptical takes: developers question whether Apple can ship a competitive agent experience by fall when the underlying model is controlled by a rival who launched its own agent (Gemini Spark) the same week. The privacy controls are real but narrow — auto-delete addresses retention, not the broader question of cross-app data leakage when Siri orchestrates across third-party apps. Watch WWDC for the agent architecture details, developer SDK, and the precise contractual shape of the Gemini integration.