Apple is working on simplifying the “Hey Siri” trigger to just “Siri”, and this change could come out as early as next year, Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman reports. If rolled out, Apple’s virtual assistant would only need the “Siri” command to be triggered.

Gurman notes the switch is technical, and a lot of work would go in on “underlying engineering” and a “significant amount of AI training.” Apple has been working on the project for some time and has already begun testing the new trigger among employees and gathering the necessary data for it to be ready for a launch officially. If the new trigger world is not rolled out in 2023, Gurman says 2024 is an option.

The change from Apple to shorten the trigger command for its virtual assistant is not new. Amazon changed its “Hey Alexa” to “Alexa”, while Microsoft also switched from “Hey Cortana” to just “Cortana” on smart speakers in 2018 before shutting down the service. Google’s smart assistant can be triggered with an “OK Google” or “Hey Google” voice prompt.

Gurman says the switch is difficult for Apple because its smart assistant Siri can pick up different accents and dialects better with “Hey Siri” than just “Siri.” To improve Siri’s ability to be more functional and execute the right actions, Apple plans on integrating it into third-party apps and services. Removing “Hey” in “Hey Siri” prompt would also ensure Apple “speed up back-to-back requests,” Gurman notes. Apple also recently redesigned the interface for Siri on the Apple TV as part of the tvOS 16.1 update.