Katarzyna Petru
Apple has confirmed something that just a few months ago sounded like absolute abstraction: iPhone users in Japan will be able to change the function of the side button to launch a voice assistant other than Siri. Yes – Google, Alexa, ChatGPT… or maybe some local Japanese assistant? It seems that Apple is now opening a new chapter in its approach to voice assistants.
Experiment Exclusively for Japan (At least for starters)
The documentation published on the Apple developer blog explicitly states that the feature will be available only in Japan. And while the company makes no promises for the future, it is hard not to get the impression that this is a test ahead of a global rollout. Several hours earlier, in iOS 26.2 beta 3, the first clues appeared that Apple is working on replacing Siri under the side button:
a new system application "SystemVoiceAssistant" was detected in the system,
references to the "Side Button App", responsible for assistant selection, were found.
Now we have official confirmation — Apple is indeed implementing this.
How is it supposed to work?
Apple explains that developers will be able to assign their voice-based conversational apps (such as AI assistants) as an action triggered by holding down the side button. This requires:
adding the permission com.apple.developer.side-button-access.allow in the project,
preparing the App Intent according to the new Activate App Intent schema,
immediately switching the app to audio listening mode (AVFoundation) so that the user can start speaking right away.
Apple even publishes sample code showing how the implementation should look — and clearly emphasises: function available only in Japan.
iOS 26.2 increasingly likely
Although Apple does not state this explicitly, the code present in the latest beta suggests that the feature will most likely appear with iOS 26.2. If so, Japan will become the first market where Siri is no longer "tied" to the physical button of the iPhone.
This could be one of the most significant changes in Siri's history. For the first time, Apple is entertaining the idea that a user might prefer a different assistant. It is hard to believe that the giant from Cupertino will permanently limit this only to Japan. If the test is successful – the path to the USA and Europe will be wide open.
The question that everyone is now asking:
Will an iPhone with a side button launching ChatGPT be commonplace in 2026?
