To launch the voice assistant on your iPhone, you say "Hey Siri" or simply "Siri" and then issue a command. That's been the case for a long time, but Apple will finally let you change it to a custom trigger phrase of your choice that "launches shortcuts and completes complex tasks." This isn't a sweeping system change coming with iOS 18, but it does allow you to set custom phrases for certain tasks in your workflow.
This means that while you can't completely replace the "Hey Siri" command in iOS 18, you can choose to ask Siri to do something without having to call it by its name.
iOS 18’s big push for accessibility
We've already written about Apple's recent iOS 18 accessibility features announced ahead of WWDC 2024, one of which is called "Voice Shortcuts." This will allow you to use a custom phrase to trigger Siri. You can also launch shortcuts with custom phrases in iOS 18. An example shared by Apple shows an iPhone using the phrase "Rings" to display activity rings on an Apple Watch.
This is an accessibility feature designed to help people with speech challenges. This is a great example of why companies should invest more in improving accessibility—features that make the iPhone experience better for everyone. Vocal Shortcuts sounds like a great addition to the iPhone, but there are still some kinks to work out.
Even the "Hey Siri" command can be triggered accidentally, or sometimes the iPhone doesn't understand it. Well, it remains to be seen how effective the sound shortcuts will be. There's always a chance it could be triggered by mistake, which could make the feature less useful. Screenshots shared by Apple show that it works just like Siri's setup process, with your iPhone asking you to say the phrase a few times to learn how you say it. Sound shortcuts will be based on your speech, which should reduce the chance of accidentally launching the shortcut.
