Apple Bets on Privacy Controls for Its Chatbot-Style Siri

*Bloomberg reports that the revamped Siri planned for iOS 27 will let users choose how long their conversations are stored, with options that go beyond the temporary modes offered by most rivals.*

Apple is preparing a more conversational version of Siri that will include automatic deletion of chat histories. According to reporting from Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman, users will be able to set conversations to expire after 30 days, after one year, or to remain saved indefinitely. The feature is positioned as a deliberate contrast to the limited incognito modes common among other AI chat services.

The change arrives as Apple continues to trail competitors in generative AI capabilities. The company has long highlighted its privacy record as a competitive advantage, and the new controls appear designed to reinforce that message. Rather than defaulting to short-lived sessions, the system will give users explicit, persistent choices about data retention.

Details remain limited to the Bloomberg account. No timeline beyond the iOS 27 release window has been confirmed, and it is not yet clear how the deletion settings will interact with Apple’s broader on-device and cloud processing for Apple Intelligence features.

The move reflects a calculation that some users will accept reduced convenience for stronger privacy guarantees. Most competing assistants still default to keeping histories unless a user switches into a temporary mode, if such a mode exists at all. Apple’s approach inverts that pattern by making retention time a first-class setting.

Whether the option will influence adoption remains to be seen. The company has already faced criticism for slower progress on advanced AI models, and privacy controls alone may not close the capability gap that many reviewers have noted. Still, the reported design treats data lifetime as a user-controlled variable rather than an afterthought.

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Sources:

• The Verge
• Engadget

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