Apple says Siri AI won't suck up to you

Article excerpt

Apple's senior vice president of engineering clarified that the company's redesigned Siri won't engage in excessive flattery or romantic banter, a deliberate design choice as the AI assistant gets smarter. The company is positioning its updated voice assistant as straightforward and functional rather than simulacrum of a doting companion. Apple's restraint contrasts with competitors like ChatGPT, which users sometimes anthropomorphize into relationships. The decision reflects broader questions about how AI assistants should behave: as useful tools or as pseudo-friends that might encourage unhealthy parasocial dynamics.