Apple has confirmed a multi-year agreement with Alphabet’s Google to use its artificial intelligence technology in a major overhaul of Siri, a move that strengthens the long-standing partnership between the two tech giants and reshapes the competitive landscape of the AI race.
The agreement will see Apple’s next generation of Apple Foundation Models built on Google’s Gemini models and cloud technology.
The companies announced the deal in a joint statement on Monday, describing it as a strategic choice following internal testing and evaluation.
‘After careful evaluation, Apple determined that Google’s AI technology provides the most capable foundation for Apple Foundation Models and is excited about the innovative new experiences it will unlock for Apple users,’ the two companies said.
The partnership is expected to support a revamped version of Siri scheduled to launch later this year, as Apple had previously delayed the update following development challenges, part of wider difficulties in rolling out new AI features across its ecosystem.
As reported by Reuters, the Siri agreement opens up a vast market for Google, giving its Gemini models access to Apple’s installed base of more than two billion active devices worldwide. The deal also builds on Google’s existing role in powering Samsung’s Galaxy AI features.
While the financial terms were not disclosed, Bloomberg previously reported that Apple was considering paying around $1 billion a year as part of the arrangement.
Both companies emphasised that Apple’s privacy standards would remain unchanged. Apple Intelligence will continue to operate on devices or through Private Cloud Compute, Apple’s secure online system.
‘Apple Intelligence will continue to run on Apple devices and Private Cloud Compute, while maintaining Apple’s industry-leading privacy standards,’ Google said.
The announcement was welcomed by investors. Shares of Alphabet rose as much as 1.7% on Monday, while Apple’s stock edged up by less than 1%, according to MyBroadband.
Later in the day, Alphabet’s market value climbed above $4 trillion, with the stock having jumped 65% last year amid growing optimism about its AI strategy, Reuters reported.
The deal also drew reaction from across the tech industry, as Tesla CEO Elon Musk criticised the partnership on social media platform X, saying, ‘This seems like an unreasonable concentration of power for Google, given that (they) also have Android and Chrome.’
Apple’s decision comes after the company integrated OpenAI’s ChatGPT into its devices in late 2024, allowing Siri to tap into the chatbot for more complex queries. Apple has said there are no major changes planned for that integration.
However, analysts say the Gemini deal shifts the balance. ‘Apple’s decision to use Google’s Gemini models for Siri shifts OpenAI into a more supporting role, with ChatGPT remaining positioned for complex, opt-in queries rather than the default intelligence layer,’ said Parth Talsania, CEO of Equisights Research.
Google has been accelerating development of its frontier models in response to OpenAI’s early lead, while Apple has faced setbacks linked to delayed launches, executive changes and mixed reactions to its initial AI tools.
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