You Can Give Siri a New Name With iOS 18's Vocal Shortcuts

Apple has introduced several new features in iOS 18 to enhance Siri's functionality. Some of these features include:

1. Vocal Shortcuts: This feature allows users to assign a custom phrase that Siri can understand to launch shortcuts and complete complex tasks. One of the shortcuts users can set up is an alternative for "Hey Siri," effectively allowing users to give Siri a new wake word4.

2. Integration with Apple Intelligence: Apple's new AI platform, Apple Intelligence, is deeply integrated into iOS 18 and enhances Siri's capabilities4. With this integration, Siri gains on-screen awareness, allowing it to act on what it sees and take actions across apps, including photo editing.

3. Enhanced Natural Language Processing: Siri now has better natural language processing capabilities, enabling it to understand users even if they stutter. It can also remember the context of a conversation, making it easier to complete tasks based on previous interactions.

4. In-app Actions: Siri can now perform actions within iPhone apps on behalf of users. For example, it can pull up a photo of a driver's license, automatically grab the number, and paste it into a form.

5. ChatGPT Integration: Apple has partnered with OpenAI to integrate ChatGPT with Siri. With a user's permission, Siri can send a request to ChatGPT for help. For example, if a user asks Siri for assistance on a task that ChatGPT is better suited for, Siri will suggest using the chatbot instead and forward the request.

These new features aim to make Siri more capable, intelligent, and user-friendly, simplifying and accelerating everyday tasks for iOS users.

The Vocal Shortcuts feature has a limitation when using a new wake word to activate Siri compared to the traditional "Hey Siri" command. With the Vocal Shortcuts setup, you need to pause and wait for it to activate before you give a command. For example, if you set up a custom wake word like "Computer," you would need to say "Computer" and then pause before giving the command, such as "What time is it?" This is different from the traditional "Hey Siri" command, where you can say an entire phrase, like "Hey Siri, what time is it?" without stopping5. The delay associated with the Vocal Shortcuts setup might not be ideal for some users, as it requires an additional step and may not be as efficient as the traditional method.