BRUSSELS — European technology chief Henna Virkkunen held "constructive" talks with Apple CEO Tim Cook this week, a European Commission spokesperson said on Wednesday, after the two sides clashed over the roll-out of Siri AI in Europe.
EU regulators and Apple traded blame last month over competition rules that the iPhone maker says have stopped it from releasing its upgraded Siri AI assistant in the bloc, making it unavailable for iPhone and iPad users in the region.
"We can confirm that the call between EVP Virkkunen and Mr Tim Cook took place. It was a constructive exchange on topics of common interest, on which the work continues," the EU spokesperson said.
Apple has said its Siri AI would not be available initially in the EU, faulting the Commission for refusing to engage constructively. The Commission has blamed Apple, saying it had been unable to develop "interoperability" to meet EU standards.
Europe accounted for nearly 27% of Apple's total sales in its last fiscal year. The DMA aims to rein in Big Tech — breaches can lead to fines of up to 10% of a company's global annual turnover.
