Apple Stock Plummets as WWDC Keynote Reveals Siri AI Upgrades Are Delayed

Apple's stock took a sudden dip just a few minutes into its Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) keynote on Monday. The apparent reason? One word: Siri. About six minutes into the presentation, Apple's stock price plummeted more than 2.5%, falling from approximately $206 to below $201. This rapid decline erased $75 billion in market value. moments before, Craig Federighi, Apple's senior vice president of software engineering, was recapping the company’s recent advancements in Apple Intelligence, highlighting features like Memoji, smart replies, and improved photo cleanup tools. But the mood shifted abruptly when he addressed Siri. "We’re continuing our work to deliver the features that make Siri even more personal. This work needed more time to meet our high quality standards, and we look forward to sharing more about it in the coming year," Federighi said. In simpler terms, Apple acknowledged that its much-anticipated AI overhaul for Siri is still not ready. This admission disappointed investors, who have been eagerly awaiting significant AI improvements from the company for nearly a year. While expectations forWWDC 2023 were not sky-high, the tech industry's rapid advancements have created a sense of urgency. Competitors like Google, Microsoft, and OpenAI are making strides almost weekly, rolling out generative AI models, enhanced chatbots, and a slew of new features. Apple's delay highlights a broader issue: the company has been lagging in building the infrastructure and foundational models required for cutting-edge AI. Traditionally, Apple prefers to keep developments under wraps until they are fully polished and ready for release. However, in today's fast-paced AI landscape, this strategy might no longer be viable. Merely admitting that a product is not yet ready can result in substantial market losses. Earlier this year, Apple faced additional scrutiny when an industry watchdog accused the company of overstating the readiness of its AI features, including the next-generation Siri, by using "available now" claims in its advertising. Following the critique, Apple had to remove those ads, further eroding investor confidence. The delayed rollout of major AI features underscores Apple's challenge in keeping up with the rapid innovation in the tech sector. As competitors continue to roll out groundbreaking AI technologies, Apple’s stock reaction reflects the growing impatience of the market and the pressure the company faces to deliver. In the current AI arms race, transparency and timely updates are increasingly important, and Apple’s traditional secrecy might be costing them more than it benefits.