David Awoyode
Apple may be turning to Google’s Gemini AI to power its long-delayed “Apple Intelligence” and give Siri a major boost, according to a Bloomberg report. The discussions are described as “early-stage” with no official confirmation from either company.
Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman suggested that Apple shifted attention to Google after failing to reach financial terms with Anthropic, the company behind Claude AI.
Why Siri Needs Help
If Apple does incorporate Gemini, it could significantly upgrade Siri — a nearly 15-year-old digital assistant that has fallen behind competitors in conversational intelligence. But doing so would mean ceding some control in a critical AI arms race to one of its biggest rivals.
Apple’s Own Struggles
At WWDC 2025, Apple’s Senior Vice President of Software Engineering Craig Federighi explained that delays in Apple Intelligence came down to the limitations of its “V1 architecture.” Apple ultimately decided to scrap that approach and rework the underlying system, delaying the launch until at least 2026.
Still, Gurman claims Apple has not yet fully committed to relying solely on in-house AI models and may outsource key functions to a third party like Google.
Existing Apple–Google Partnerships
Apple and Google are no strangers to collaboration. Google Search is the default on Safari, and Apple’s Visual Intelligence already allows users to run image queries through either Google or ChatGPT.
However, integrating Gemini into Siri would be a significant departure from Apple’s usual emphasis on proprietary technology. It could also signal that Apple is struggling to keep pace with AI leaders like OpenAI, Anthropic, Perplexity, and Google itself.
What It Means Going Forward
Any agreement between Apple and Google would likely not impact the upcoming release of iOS 26, which includes some Apple Intelligence features but almost no Siri improvements.
The move would mirror Microsoft’s Copilot strategy, which relies heavily on OpenAI’s GPT models. Still, it raises a question: if Siri’s intelligence is powered by Google, can Apple continue to brand it as “Apple Intelligence”?
Apple and Google declined to comment on Bloomberg’s report
Charles Esther