In the Kitchen

I’m not sure when it happened, but the start of my Siri-related woes feel tied to the roll out of Apple Intelligence. To start from the beginning…

I live in a house with other humans, my wife and two kids. Our house has an open floor plan, but not to be confused with open concept, there are doorways and walls, but rooms flow together. I have HomePods Mini in the kitchen, dining room, and the salon (what I would have called a “formal living room” when I was young), and we regularly have music playing. The goal is to have the same music playing in all three rooms, as to allow one to move between the rooms not having different music, or music out of sync.

My wife will speak to the house “Siri, play jazz in the kitchen.” And as expected the kitchen HomePod Mini starts playing a “station” or “playlist” (more on that distinction in a later post).

The inclusion of “in the kitchen” has been a learned addition. The Apple flavored version of what Panos Panay calls “Alexa speak.” Due to the shape of the house, and the proximity of the HomePods Mini, it has been a common occurrence that a HomePod Mini in another room will hear the wake word and start playing. The sensitivity and zealousness of the HomePods to respond can result in the music being played across the house instead of the room one is in.

“Siri, play jazz in the kitchen.”

Success, jazz plays on the Kitchen HomePod Mini.

Sometimes, the mood is not jazz. The mood dictates music, but there is no specific genre required. “Hey Siri, play some music,” has resulted in the “Just for you” mix to be played. The “Just for you” mix is a gamble, but after years of liking songs and adding them to Apple Music libraries, the mix can be a perfect match for the mood of “the thread” is right.

The addition of “in the kitchen” is habitual, but necessary “Siri speak”, again, based on the sensitivity and zealous nature of Siri on the HomePod. The phrase “Hey Siri, play some music in the kitchen,” has been a success.

Until recently…

Now, the same phrase will result in the kitchen HomePod playing one of three songs, “In the Kitchen” by Reneé Rapp, “La Linda” by Gabriel Morales (a presumed mishearing of “in the kitchen”), or “IN THE KITCHEN (feat. Fox BD)” by Baby Mel.

I have confirmed that the HomePod Mini being addressed is in the “kitchen” room in the Home app, and it was recently reset due to ongoing connectivity issues (which thankfully have been resolved with a slight relocation). The only change that I cannot account for is the addition of Apple Intelligence across the Apple ecosystem. Something is indeed rotten in the state of Cupertino.