Apple and Google have announced a partnership that will see Gemini as the basis for the iPhone company’s software development. The aim is to catapult the voice assistant Siri into the AI age. This should awaken hope among many Apple fans and bring tears of joy to the eyes of shareholders. But the deal is not entirely harmless. A commentary analysis.
With Gemini: Apple wants to bring Siri into the AI age
- Google technologies such as Gemini will serve as the basis for Apple’s software development in the future as part of a multi-year agreement. Especially that one The voice assistant Siri is to be brought into the AI age. According to reports, Google will not receive exclusive rights. For Apple, the integration represents a departure from its previous strategy of developing core technologies exclusively in-house.
- With Apple Intelligence, the iPhone company launched its own AI-supported functions – for example for photo searches and notifications on Apple devices. But so far these have remained falls short of expectations. The AI update for Siri, which has been long-awaited by many Apple fans, has already been postponed several times and has been a long time coming for over a year. Apple is therefore making the Gemini deal cost around a billion US dollars per year.
- The issue of data protection plays a major role for Apple and has now become something of a product promise. In order to integrate Gemini into Siri, a large part of the Data processing therefore continues on Apple devices or on a controlled infrastructure. The company emphasizes that Google will comply with its own data protection standards. However, it is still unclear what this will look like in practice.
Google could overtake OpenAI
Google could soon overtake OpenAI in the AI competition. The company has already gained significant ground with Gemini 3, as Google has cleverly positioned its chatbot as a kind of anti-ChatGPT.
Since Google has launched a model with AI that can be integrated into numerous services and platforms, OpenAI has already declared Code Red and launched a counterattack.
The deal with Apple is likely to further strengthen Google’s dominance and the AI competition brings worry lines to your forehead. Because the collaboration goes far beyond the ChatGPT integration on the iPhone. Google often also grants its partners access to data such as user interactions, which are not only relevant for smooth functionality but also for advertisements.
The new Apple-Google axis could therefore become one further monopolistic dominance which the competition authorities are also likely to keep an eye on. A dependency on Gemini and a move away from ChatGPT could have far-reaching consequences at the user level.
Voices
- Apple and Google In a joint statement, Apple and Google have agreed to a multi-year collaboration under which the next generation of Apple Foundation Models will be based on Gemini models and Google’s cloud technology. These models will help support future Apple Intelligence features, including a more personalized Siri feature scheduled to launch later this year.
- Due to the explosiveness of the deal, the reactions from other tech bosses were not long in coming. Elon Muskwhich is now also involved in the AI race, in a post on its platform X (formerly Twitter): “This seems to be an inappropriate concentration of power for Google, since the company also owns Android and Chrome.”
- For one Reddit user Apple is admitting its own incompetence with the Gemini deal. On the platform, he scoffs: “Apple has hit a home run with its M-series processors, but its software division is a damn masterclass in embarrassment.”
When is Siri coming with Gemini?
The cooperation between Apple and Google will mean that Gemini will no longer appear exclusively on Google smartphones in the future, but will also end up in the hands of iPhone users. The deal is expected to significantly boost the search engine giant’s sales in 2026.
Google also wants to present numerous other AI functions and place advertising via an AI mode. But Apple could also benefit if the company manages to catch up in the AI competition with a completely revamped Siri based on Gemini.
Ultimately, a lot will depend on whether Apple manages to reconcile Gemini with its privacy promise and Siri and integrate it into its ecosystem. A new Siri version could then come onto the market as early as spring 2026 – for example with the release of iOS 26.4.
Due to regulatory requirements, it will probably take longer for the new voice assistant to come to Germany, similar to Apple Intelligence.
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