Apple's big Siri AI upgrade will be powered by Google Gemini
The two tech companies have signed a deal that will let Apple use Google's AI for new features
🍎 Apple has agreed to work with Google for its new version of Siri
🤖 The iPhone maker will use Gemini to power the next-generation version of its voice assistant
📆 This comes nearly a year after Apple delayed the launch of the upgrade
❌ Apple has faced many roadblocks in its roll-out of AI features, including personnel departures and development hiccups
👀 The new version of Siri will be released sometime this year
Apple’s long-awaited Siri AI upgrade is almost here. Today, the company announced a partnership with Google that allows it to use Gemini AI for future software features, including the next generation of Siri. The upgrade has been in development for a while now, after getting delayed back in March amid development and personnel problems within Apple, stifling its release.
In a joint statement, Apple and Google had the following to say:
Apple and Google have entered into a multi-year collaboration under which the next generation of Apple Foundation Models will be based on Google’s Gemini models and cloud technology. These models will help power future Apple Intelligence features, including a more personalized Siri coming this year.
After careful evaluation, Apple determined that Google’s Al technology provides the most capable foundation for Apple Foundation Models and is excited about the innovative new experiences it will unlock for Apple users. Apple Intelligence will continue to run on Apple devices and Private Cloud Compute, while maintaining Apple’s industry-leading privacy standards.
While Google Gemini will serve as the underlying technology for Apple’s future AI plans, Apple will still control the hardware that the AI operates on. This will help ensure everything meets the company’s security and privacy policies, and give Apple Foundation Models a much smoother experience than what Apple was able to cook up on its own.
It was rumored that Apple might ditch its own AI models and go with a third-party option to speed up development. Reports indicated that the company was interested in working with Google, Perplexity, and OpenAI, and it looks like Google was the winner. Gemini will be behind the scenes powering features like the big Siri AI upgrade, which will help do things on your behalf and give you more contextual features across apps and services.
Ahead of today’s announcement, Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman leaked that Apple was likely to work with Google for Gemini access, which is said to cost the iPhone maker about $1 billion per year.
This is a huge step in the right direction for Apple, who seems to have had the hardest path yet in the roll-out of its AI features among tech companies. Between executive reshuffling, losing key members of its AI team, and hitting roadblocks with its own AI model development, the Google deal is by far the most positive news we’ve heard on this topic since WWDC 2024 when Apple initially announced its AI features with iOS 18. We still have to wait for the new Siri to come out to know whether it’s any good, but so far, things seem to be on the right track.
Max Buondonno is Editor at The Shortcut. He’s been reporting on the latest consumer technology since 2015, with his work featured on CNN Underscored, ZDNET, How-To Geek, XDA, TheStreet, and more. Follow him on X @LegendaryScoop and Instagram @LegendaryScoop.