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In what might be one of the most significant and surprising tech partnerships in recent memory, a new report claims that Apple is turning to its biggest rival to power the next generation of its AI assistant. According to Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman (via MacRumors), the revamped version of Siri, set for a rollout next year, will “lean” on Google’s Gemini AI.
This move, if it comes to fruition, would be a massive admission from Apple and a monumental win for Google’s AI division, cementing Gemini as a foundational platform for the entire industry.
How a Gemini-powered Siri would work
This isn’t a simple case of the Siri app plugging into the public Gemini API. The report details a much deeper and more custom partnership. Apple is said to be paying Google to create a custom, Gemini-based model. This custom model would then run on Apple’s own Private Cloud Compute servers to power the new, more capable version of Siri.
Gurman clarifies that this doesn’t mean Siri will suddenly include Google services or Gemini features. For the end-user, the experience will almost certainly be a pure, polished Apple UI. Google’s powerful AI model will simply be the engine running in the background, enabling Siri to (hopefully) deliver the advanced conversational features users have been demanding.
When to expect the new Siri
This revamped, Gemini-powered Siri is reportedly planned for a rollout around March of next year (2026). The launch is expected to be accompanied by new hardware, including a new smart home display, with a new Apple TV and HomePod mini also set to “help showcase” the new capabilities.
Despite the powerful new backend, Gurman includes a significant warning, noting that “there’s no guarantee users will embrace it, that it will work seamlessly or that it can undo years of damage to the Siri brand”.
This is a stunning development to watch. While Apple will undoubtedly continue to develop its own on-device Apple Intelligence features, this report suggests that the heavy-lifting for its next-gen conversational AI will be handled by Google.
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