If you're the type of person who tends to wake up to a cup of coffee and a newspaper, you might now be able to eliminate both of those steps if you own an iPhone. As reported by 9to5Mac, iPhone owners who opt in to Apple's iOS 11.2.5 beta will be given the opportunity to stream a news podcast by simply saying "Hey Siri, give me the news."
Siri's news podcast will come from The Washington Post by default but users can reportedly ask the virtual assistant to use Fox News, NPR or CNN instead, based on their personal preferences.
Though this feature was almost certainly designed with Apple's upcoming HomePod in mind, it could also prove to be a popular feature among standard iPhone users if it becomes a permanent fixture. Being able to get a quick update on the latest news stories without even picking up your phone – much less rolling out of bed – could appeal to many.
Interestingly, this feature does not appear to work in the same way when Siri is activated manually. Holding down the Home button and then proceeding to ask the virtual assistant for the news will result in Siri offering its pre-beta response to the prompt - a simple list of Apple News and Safari news headlines. It's possible that this is just a safeguard intended to prevent users from playing a news podcast manually while driving, however.