Apple may offer paid iCloud+ upgrades that provide heavier users with additional access to its forthcoming Siri AI assistant. Tim Cook discussed the possibility during his final earnings call as Apple’s chief executive, although he said the company had not finalised its plans.
Cook said Apple expects some customers to use Siri AI extensively and may let them purchase higher levels of access through iCloud+. The existing subscription service provides additional cloud storage and other features across several monthly plans.
“We do believe there will be people that want to use [Siri AI] a lot,” Cook said during Apple’s third-quarter 2026 earnings call. He added that users could have options to move up the iCloud+ subscription tiers, depending on demand.
Higher Usage Limits Could Require a Subscription
Apple has not detailed which Siri AI capabilities would remain free or how much additional access subscribers might receive. Cook’s comments indicate that the assistant would have a free level, while customers with heavier usage could pay for more computing capacity.
OpenAI and Anthropic follow a similar structure by offering limited free access alongside paid subscriptions with higher usage allowances. Apple already uses iCloud+ to sell additional storage, privacy features and other services.
The proposal could also give Apple another source of services revenue as AI features require costly cloud infrastructure. Apple reported $30.74 billion in services revenue for the latest quarter, covering offerings such as iCloud+, Apple TV and Apple One.
Siri AI Scheduled for Wider Release This Fall
Apple introduced the redesigned assistant in its official Siri AI announcement. The new system is available for developer testing through iOS 27 and is scheduled to enter a wider English-language beta later in 2026.
Siri AI is designed to support more natural conversations, answer open-ended questions and work across apps. Apple is also using a customised Gemini model from Google to support parts of the assistant after delays affected its internal development.
Apple agreed in May to pay $250 million to settle a class action lawsuit concerning how it promoted delayed AI features for the iPhone 16. The settlement did not include an admission of wrongdoing.
John Ternus Prepares to Take Over
John Ternus will replace Cook as Apple’s chief executive on September 1, while Cook will become executive chairman. Apple confirmed the succession in an official announcement.
Ternus will take control as Apple faces rising memory and processor costs caused by demand from AI data centres. Apple raised prices for some Mac and iPad models in July but has not changed prices for its existing iPhone range.
Other hardware companies, including Meta, Samsung, Microsoft and Sony, have also increased prices for selected devices as component costs rose. Apple expects its year-over-year revenue growth to slow to between 9% and 11% in the coming quarter, compared with 16% in its latest reported period.
Featured image credits: iphonedigital via Flickr
For more stories like it, click the +Follow button at the top of this page to follow us.