Siri hack on iPhone 4, iPod Touch can now chat with Apple’s servers

The hacker who first ported Siri to the iPhone 4 has now surpassed the next major hurdle towards porting the virtual assistant: getting it to talk to Apple’s servers.

Hacker Steven Troughton-Smith was able to trick the iPhone 4 and latest-generation iPod Touch into successfully communicating with Apple’s servers thanks to a recent iPhone 4S jailbreak, which gave him access to new files integral to Siri’s functionality, 9to5 Mac reports.

Troughton-Smith made headlines soon after the iPhone 4S launch by being the first to make Siri available on the iPhone 4 (right now Siri is exclusive to Apple’s newest iPhone, the 4S). But his port still lacked the crucial ability to talk with Apple’s servers, through which most of Siri’s functionality runs.

But the hacker still has a way to go before the port is readily available:

At this point it’s all about confirming this works across devices, making it reproducible (we got it working on two devices today), and documenting everything. It does require files from an iPhone 4S which aren’t ours to distribute, and it also requires a validation token from the iPhone 4S that has to be pulled live from a jailbroken iPhone 4S, and it’s about a 20-step process right now.

Troughton-Smith told 9to5 Mac that he won’t take part in distributing the completed Siri port, since it will require pushing Apple-owned files, but he wouldn’t be surprised if the quasi-legal software made its way to the public. To finalize the port, he partnered with the jailbreak developer Chpwn, who is known for jailbreak apps like ProSwitcher and Infiniapps.

Below, check out a video of Siri running on the iPod Touch. Due to its slightly weaker microphone, Troughton-Smith says you have to speak louder and more clearly to use Siri on the iPod Touch.