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I find it interesting that Apple prefers to fall behind in Europe rather than opening their platform a tiny bit.

It gives us European some opportunities. I have a side project at work that was heavily threatened by Siri’s new features. Now I feel more relaxed as Siri isn’t coming there anytime soon.

But overall I doubt we will replace Apple.

> rather than opening their platform a tiny bit

Handing full access to the data on a user's device over to a company with the scruples of somebody like Facebook is a privacy nightmare, not "opening their platform a tiny bit".

Yeah, but you get to choose who gets to rip off your data. Joking aside, perhaps there would be some privacy focused alternatives and most importantly for Europeans, they would be hosted in the EU.
Well, let that be my concern. Why should I trust Apple more than let's say Proton?
Because when you open it to Proton, you have to open it to Meta. And when Meta does Meta things, the first thing the average user will complain to is Apple - "didn't you advertise to me about privacy?!"
Apple could make settings for controlling exactly what is shared with the various assistants installed including Siri itself. No need for defaulting to full access.

Apple is not abiding, because they want to use time to really ensure they have the best assistant, before they allow competitors to build assistants for iPhone that can replace Siri (in the EU only probably)

Isn't that ultimately the user's choice?
Who knows? There has been a lot more attention to alternatives as of recently and there is more pushback against lock-in using remote attestation, Google/Apple Pay, etc.

It seems things start to get rolling in a way that they haven't since the start of the Google/Apple duopoly.

Opening up third party access to read all user data on the device, agentic control over all installed apps, etc. is opening the platform a tiny bit?
From the perspective of the user owning their own data and their own device, yes.

From Apple's strategy board point of view, no.

It is entirely possible that Apple soon may loose EU market entirely once the Trump gets a relief in Iran and once again tries to invade Greenland.

Apple's services revenue is showing a strong growth and it is entirely dependent on keeping the ecosystem closed so that it can take its commission and sell its services.

Once things get moving they would prefer still having control on the on the US market rather than making slightly more money(if any. No one wants this AI stuff as you can tell by the strong sales Apple keeps having despite or thanks to not having AI integrated) when the EU market is still open to them.

> It gives us European some opportunities...Now I feel more relaxed as Siri isn’t coming anytime soon.

We've had endless opportunities to compete during Apple's entire 50 year existence.

As someone living in Europe I feel ashamed to read you openly admitting this. This sentiment would feel at home in the USSR.

Instead of trying to create things the world finds useful by building something better/cheaper/more innovative, we're choosing protectionism so we can screw our customers with inferior products they're forced to buy...and relax.

I think we've done enough relaxing in Europe.

We were the birthplace of the industrial revolution...the technologies of which went on to bring the entire world out of poverty last century.

Do we seriously have nothing valuable to contribute to the world during the entirety of the digital revolution? If not, I think our decline and collapsing social welfare systems are deserved.