Apple's latest Siri overhaul, unveiled at WWDC 2026, has transformed one of the company's most useful features into a cumbersome interface that prioritizes AI-generated summaries over direct search results. After a week of testing the iOS 27 developer beta, reviewers found that the new Siri-first design has made basic tasks like conducting a web search significantly more complicated, requiring multiple taps and menu selections where a single swipe and tap once sufficed.

What Happened to Apple's Spotlight Search?

The transformation centers on Spotlight, Apple's embedded search and launcher feature that users have relied on for years to quickly find apps and conduct web searches. Previously, swiping down from the center of the screen, typing a query, and tapping a Google search result was a three-step process. Now, the same action triggers Apple Intelligence to generate its own curated results, burying the traditional search option beneath multiple additional taps.

To access a standard web search from Spotlight now requires navigating through several steps: typing the query, tapping "Show Results," being careful not to hit enter (which triggers Siri instead), tapping "Show More" next to Siri's suggested links, scrolling down to find the search engine option, and finally tapping it. This represents a dramatic increase in friction for what was previously one of Apple's most convenient OS features.

Why Is Apple Redesigning Siri This Way?

The shift reflects significant personnel changes at Apple's AI division. At the end of 2025, Apple replaced its former AI chief John Giannandrea, who previously served as Google's Senior Vice President of search and AI, with Amar Subramanya. Subramanya spent 16 years at Google, including time as head of Gemini engineering, and now serves as Apple's Vice President of AI, reporting directly to Craig Federighi, Apple's Senior Vice President of software engineering.

The design philosophy mirrors Google's AI Overviews, which similarly push traditional search results down the page in favor of AI-generated summaries. Apple has also leaned heavily on a partnership with Google to build its foundation models, suggesting that Subramanya may have brought some of Google's AI strategy with him to Cupertino.

What Are Users Actually Experiencing With New Siri?

The new Siri does introduce some genuinely useful improvements. The AI assistant can now carry on actual conversations, allowing users to ask follow-up questions and clarifications rather than the previous "ask, get a response, we're done" interaction model. On Mac devices like the M1 MacBook, Siri can find things on the device more easily, though iPhone users have reported extended re-indexing delays lasting more than a week after updating.

A dedicated Siri app now maintains a record of every conversation for later review, but this feature comes with its own drawback. Even brief queries, such as asking for an overnight weather forecast, are stored permanently and clutter the conversation list until manually deleted. Users must choose between keeping a cluttered chat history or setting an expiration window that erases even useful past conversations.

How to Work Around the New Siri Interface

• Disable Siri Entirely: Users can turn off Siri completely through the Settings app if they prefer the old interface, though this removes all AI assistant functionality.
• Create Custom Shortcuts: Apple's new natural language shortcut creation feature allows users to ask Siri to build automated scripts; one tester created a home screen shortcut for direct Google searches, bypassing the Siri-first interface entirely.
• Wait for Public Release: Since this is a developer beta, Apple may reconsider the design before the iOS 27 public release this fall, potentially restoring easier access to traditional Spotlight search functionality.

The transformation of Spotlight appears intentional, designed to front-load Apple Intelligence as the primary interface for any search that isn't explicitly for an app or file. However, this approach seems to prioritize promoting the company's new AI capabilities over preserving the usability of existing features that users have come to depend on.

Apple did not respond to requests for clarification about whether the Spotlight changes were intentional, leaving open the possibility that the company may adjust the interface before the public release. For now, users testing the developer beta have discovered that working around the new Siri interface requires either disabling it entirely or creating custom workarounds, neither of which represents the seamless experience Apple typically aims for in its operating systems.