Apple is reportedly in talks with news publishers about licensing their content to supply its upcoming AI-powered version of Siri with access to current news and information, according to a report from The Wall Street Journal. The discussions have taken place over recent months as Apple works to significantly upgrade Siri’s capabilities.
According to the report, Apple has proposed a variable compensation structure that would pay publishers based on actual usage of their content rather than a fixed licensing fee, a departure from the industry’s more common practice of guaranteed payments tied to broad content access. The report also indicates Apple has considered setting aside a nine-figure budget for these payments.
Apple did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the discussions.
The talks come as Apple continues efforts to deliver a more capable version of Siri, years after first promising a smarter AI assistant to users. The enhanced version of Siri is expected to launch later this year, positioning Apple to compete more directly with AI-powered assistants and chatbots from rivals that have already integrated real-time news and information access into their products.