Siri co-founder leaves Apple

A co-founder and CEO of Siri, the company behind the Apple iPhone 4S' new voice-activated personal assistant, has left the company, a tech site reported. Citing sources, All Things Digital said Norwegian-born Dag Kittlaus left on amicable terms and had planned his departure for a while. The report said the reasons included Kittlaus’ family being in Chicago, a desire to take time off and an interest in new entrepreneurial ideas. It said Kittlaus likely left shortly after the Apple 4S was launched. But All Things Digital also quoted its sources as saying other key executives from Siri are expected to remain at Apple, which had acquired Siri. Kittlaus, Siri’s CEO since 2007, led the speech recognition efforts for Apple since it bought Siri in April 2010. He had been an Entrepreneur in Residence at the Stanford Research Institute and had also worked at Motorola. — TJD, GMA News