James Martin/CNET

Apple's ready to keep you up to date. All you need to do is ask.

As first reported by 9to5Mac, a "give me the news" feature is now fully functional for Siri in the US, and it's launching in the UK and Australia.

Previously tested as part of the iOS 11.2.5 beta, the feature lets you command Apple digital assistant Siri to play a daily news podcast. When you tell Siri to "give me the news" on any Apple device, such as your iPhone, you'll hear an up-to-date podcast from a news source of your choice.

The US version defaults to NPR, but you can switch it to CNN, the Washington Post or Fox News. Siri in the UK will play a podcast from BBC, Sky News or LBC. The feature appears to be separate from Apple's Music Radio service, and is likely part of the tech giant's preparations for the upcoming HomePod smart speaker.

The delayed HomePod will need to compete with smart speakers from Amazon and Google, and both of those companies offer similar news podcasts with a voice command.

Apple did not immediately respond to CNET's request for comment.