According to a Bloomberg report released Friday, Apple is in preliminary talks with Google about leveraging the search giant’s Gemini artificial intelligence to power a redesigned Siri. This could be another move toward external AI partnerships as the iPhone manufacturer tries to catch up in the race for generative AI.
Following years of focusing on in-house development, the discussions show Apple’s increasing willingness to outsource core AI capabilities. According to persons familiar with the situation, Mark Gurman of Bloomberg said that Google has started building a special AI model that could run on Apple’s Private Cloud Compute servers.
Internal Competition Among AI Methodologies
According to reports, Apple is holding an internal “bake-off” to decide on the best course of action for Siri’s next generation. The corporation is working on two versions at the same time: “Glenwood,” which uses third-party technology, and “Linwood,” which is powered by Apple’s own foundation models.
The possible Google collaboration comes after similar agreements were discussed with OpenAI and Anthropic in the past. Apple was apparently considering Anthropic’s Claude AI, but the corporation decided to look at other choices after arguing about pricing, with Anthropic requesting multibillion-dollar yearly payments.
Ambitions For Delayed AI
Following several disappointments, the Siri redesign is a crucial test for Apple’s AI approach. Due to technological difficulties, the improved Siri that was initially promised as part of iOS 18 was not released until 2026. Organizational changes resulted from the delays; software head Craig Federighi and Mike Rockwell, creator of Vision Pro, took over the development of Siri, while AI leader John Giannandrea was removed from consumer-facing projects.
At a recent all-hands meeting, Apple CEO Tim Cook stressed the value of AI leadership, telling staff members that “there is no project people are taking more seriously,” according to Bloomberg.
Market Response And Privacy Issues
Following the announcement of the talks, the shares of Google and Apple both hit session highs on Friday. Apple’s stock increased 1.4%, while Google’s increased 2.3%.
If the agreement is put into action, it would uphold Apple’s privacy-focused strategy by hosting third-party models on Mac-chip-powered Apple servers instead of transferring user data to third-party cloud services.
Apple is still “several weeks away” from deciding whether to move forward with third-party models or stick with its internal development efforts, and it has not committed to any external partnerships. Both companies’ representatives chose not to comment on the conversations.
It is now anticipated that the improved Siri will be available in spring 2026 as part of iOS 26.4.