Apple has come forward after WWDC 2026 and stated that the Digital Markets Act (DMA) is holding back developments with Siri AI as uses have been told in a press release and during the WWDC livestream. This comes as regulation has also impacted other developments with Siri AI in China, as the tech company works through government requirements and testing.
The Digital Markets Act was based on the European Union wanting to make major technology companies responsible for their large amount of customers, services, and other products. It refers to major tech firms as “gatekeepers” and aims to control them by having specific do’s and don’ts to prevent abuse of position – even if there is not a monopoly in the market. Apple appears to disagree with the DMA as it can present issues for user privacy if released too quickly and without the sandboxing that Apple even implements into it’s on practices. Siri and iOS are segmented, where a user can control what permissions are granted – in addition to Apple restricting the type of data which can be passed through to apps and services to enhance protection of sensitive data.
According to Apple,
“When iOS 27 and iPadOS 27 launch later this year, users in the EU1 will not have access to Siri AI and its advanced capabilities — including the new dedicated app to revisit conversations, an expanded Visual Intelligence experience, integrated tools for writing, Siri mode in Camera on iOS, and other Siri AI capabilities announced at WWDC26. EU users will be able to access Siri AI on macOS 27, visionOS 27, and watchOS 27. Developers located in the EU will not be able to test or use the new Siri AI features for their apps on iOS and iPadOS.”
Gatekeepers are required to provide fair access to a device and also mean that different functions need to be available to all apps, not just specific ones like some of Apple’s built-in apps are. A company qualifies as a gatekeeper if it meets these criteria:
- Has an annual EEA turnover of at least €7.5 billion or a market capitalization of at least €75 billion.
- Provides core platform services (e.g., app stores, search engines, messaging, operating systems) to over 45 million monthly active end-users and 10,000 yearly active business users in the EU.
These criteria don’t specifically limit it to just Apple, Samsung, and other phone providers – it can relate to any technology company which meets the above requirements.
The DMA aims to make “gatekeepers” comply with rules that directly impact daily operations and consumer devices such as:
- Alternative App Stores: Gatekeepers must allow users to download and install third-party app stores or alternative side-loaded apps on their devices.
- Interoperability: Dominant messaging apps (like WhatsApp or Messenger) are legally required to allow cross-platform interoperability with smaller messaging services.
- Pre-installed Software: Users must be given the choice to easily uninstall pre-installed apps and choose alternative default services (such as web browsers or search engines).
- Self-Preferencing: Gatekeepers are banned from treating their own products and services more favorably in rankings and search results than those offered by third-party competitors.
- Data Portability: Business users are guaranteed access to their own data generated on the gatekeeper’s platform, and consumers must be able to port their data to other services easily.
In Apple’s post-WWDC press release, Craig Federighi, Apple’s senior vice president of Software Engineering, stated:
“We’re deeply disappointed that our EU users won’t have Siri AI on iPhone or iPad when we share our new software releases later this year,” “Our hope is to eventually bring Siri AI to the EU, and we will continue to engage with EU regulators on a path forward. However, their refusal to engage constructively on solutions that preserve privacy and security means we do not currently have a timeline for Siri AI’s availability on iOS and iPadOS in the EU.”
Based on the above quote, Apple is looking for ways to find a compromise to get Siri AI to Europeans as soon as possible, but it seems that the EU does not want to budge on their hardline requirements with the DMA. As of now, users on iOS 27, iPadOS 27, macOS 27, and more will only be able to access the features from the previous Apple Intelligence model, which were introduced in 2024 and made available for EU users in March of 2025 with iOS 18.4 and iPadOS 18.4.
Could this be a blessing in disguise based on Apple’s previous AI feature release timeline, which has been slow to release after being announced? What are your thoughts on this? Let us know down in the comments or write to us on @appleosophy! Be sure to download the Appleosophy App from the App Store or visit our website to stay updated with the latest Apple news!
