Apple introduced the “Hey Siri” command with iOS 8 to allow users to easily interact with the virtual assistant without having to press any buttons. However, over the years, Siri has been mistakenly triggered when the command is spoken in a television commercial. But Apple is finally working on a fix to fix this problem.

Apple ads will no longer trigger Siri

As spotted by 9to5MacThe latest tvOS 18.2 beta released this week introduced a new framework called “AdBlocker”. Although at first glance the name suggests that it would be a simple online ad blocker, we went further and found something intriguing in this new setting.

The new AdBlocker framework is linked to ShazamKit, which is the API allowing applications to use Shazam – the song identification platform acquired by Apple in 2018. At the same time, the framework is also linked to the process responsible for the Managing “Siri” and “Hey Siri” voice commands on Apple devices.

The code suggests that “AdBlocker” will download audio fingerprints from Apple’s servers, then use the Shazam API to compare them to audio captured by the device’s microphones using the Hey Siri API. When certain audio matches, the new framework will temporarily disable Siri trigger commands.

Presumably, Apple will use audio fingerprinting in its TV commercials and keynotes to prevent any mention of Siri from triggering the virtual assistant on users’ devices.

So far, the AdBlocker framework has only been found in tvOS 18.2, which suggests that Apple wants to implement it on the HomePod first. In 2019, many HomePod owners have complained after Apple released an AirPods commercial featuring a person asking Siri to play a song. As a result, people’s HomePods have also met the demand.

Apple is expected to release tvOS 18.2 in December. The update also brings support for different aspect ratios on Apple TV.

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