Apple may introduce paid usage tiers for its forthcoming Siri AI upgrade, allowing heavy users to buy additional computing capacity through iCloud+. The proposal would bring Siri’s model closer to the subscription approaches used by other AI providers and could create a new recurring revenue stream as Apple seeks to improve an assistant widely seen as lagging rivals.

Tim Cook raised the possibility during his final earnings call as Apple CEO, stressing that the plans are not finalised. Siri AI is currently in the iOS 27 beta and is due for a broader release this autumn; Apple has licensed a customised Google Gemini model to support it after delays, including a $250 million class-action settlement over marketing of iPhone 16 AI features. The company also faces higher hardware costs amid an AI-driven RAM shortage, having recently raised Mac and iPad prices while leaving current iPhone prices unchanged.