Has One of the Biggest Mysteries Surrounding Apple Finally Been Solved?

We've met the face behind the Apple's European version of Siri and just last week reported on how intense recording such a voice-assistant can be. But now a woman is actually claiming to put a face to the voice, saying she is Siri.

Or, rather, perhaps Siri is Susan Bennett.

Susan Bennett didn't know her recording would ever become the the voice of Apple's Siri until she heard it through the product with her own ears. (Image source: CNN video screenshot)

Speaking with CNN, Bennett from suburban Atlanta said she is the well-known voice of the iPhone/iPad product. Apple will not confirm nor deny she was/is the voice of Siri.

Even though Apple wouldn't comment on this claim, CNN reported others who have worked with her, her lawyers and voice analysis experts believe she is the original electronic assistant's voice.

"I believe, and I've lived this for 30 years, no two voices are the same," audio forensic expert Ed Primeau told CNN.

"They are identical -- a 100 percent match," he said of Siri and Bennett.

Why is Bennett, who didn't even know she would become the voice of Siri until she heard herself on it, just coming out now with the news? According to CNN, Apple's new iOS 7 comes with a new Siri voice that's not Bennett, so perhaps she felt more comfortable lifting the veil.

Susan Bennett claims to be the original Siri, which in the new iOS7 is being replaced with a different voice. (Image source: CNN video screenshot)

Bennett described the process of recording phrases that would be snipped and spliced back together to become Siri's responses in a similar way to The Verge's feature published a couple weeks ago. It was after this feature that Bennett decided to step forward.

"I really had to weigh the importance of it for me personally. I wasn't sure that I wanted that notoriety, and I also wasn't sure where I stood legally. And so, consequently, I was very conservative about it for a long time," she told CNN. "And then this Verge video came out ... And it seemed like everyone was clamoring to find out who the real voice behind Siri is, and so I thought, well, you know, what the heck? This is the time."

What's also interesting is how CNN's Jessica Ravitz came upon the identity of the elusive U.S. version of Siri. Ravitz explained that she interviewed Bennett while working on a story the Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International airport (Bennett is the "voice" of Delta's terminals there).

While talking about other jobs, Bennett included some IVR work.

"Interactive voice response," Bennett said, according to CNN. "The sort of thing you hear on a company's phone system."

The first thing Ravitz said in response was "Hey, are you Siri?"

Both women gasped. Questions were asked, hurried denials followed and for months Ravitz didn't hear from Bennett. That was until two weeks ago.

Take a look at CNN's video featuring Bennett, listen to her voice and see if you think it sounds familiar:

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