An Apple patent application published by the U.S. Patent and Trademark Office reveals that Apple has high hopes for Siri. The patent application specifies the ability to dictate tasks to Siri, and specifically mentions the possibility of Siri enabling peer-to-peer payment technology. According to the document, Siri would be able to access each user’s data in an iMessage conversation and determine what peer-to-peer money transfer apps both parties have, thus facilitating payment between the two parties.
A surprising aspect of the patent application is the implication that different money transfer applications could be used. Apple Pay would obviously be the payment method of choice for an Apple designed product, but its clear that Apple understands its users may have different preferences when it comes to financial applications and paying bills. Though Siri’s ability to facilitate payments is far away from Apple users’ fingertips (or vocal box) for the time being, it will be interesting to see how the peer-to-peer payment world and Siri will intersect.
