
Siri, the first virtual personal assistant, arose from decades of research in artificial intelligence (AI) at SRI International. The technology was developed through the SRI-led Cognitive Assistant that Learns and Organizes (CALO) project within DARPA’s Personalized Assistant that Learns (PAL) program – the largest-known AI project in U.S. history – and joint work with EPFL, the Swiss institute of technology.
SRI spun off Siri, Inc. in 2007 to bring the technology to consumers, raising $24 million in two rounds of financing.
In April 2010, Apple acquired Siri, and in October 2011, Siri was unveiled as an integrated feature of the Apple iPhone 4S.