Apple, Google strike bold AI partnership with Gemini

Apple and Google AI partnership sees Apple adopt Google’s Gemini to power Siri and new AI tools, marking a rare alliance between long-time smartphone rivals

Apple Inc and Alphabet Inc’s Google on Monday announced a multi-year Apple and Google AI partnership that will see Apple’s next-generation artificial intelligence features, including its Siri digital assistant, powered by Google’s Gemini technology.

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The agreement marks a significant strategic shift for Apple, which has historically insisted on developing its most important technologies in-house.

In a joint statement, the companies said Apple selected Gemini after a “careful evaluation” found it offered “the most capable foundation” for the iPhone maker’s future AI ambitions.

The partnership is a rare alignment between two companies that have long been fierce competitors in the global smartphone market, where Apple’s iOS and Google’s Android operating systems dominate.

Despite that rivalry, the firms have maintained a lucrative commercial relationship for years, with Google paying Apple billions of dollars annually to remain the default search engine on Apple devices.

That arrangement has been under regulatory scrutiny in the United States, where the Department of Justice has argued it helps Google preserve its dominance in search.

A federal judge has so far allowed the deal to continue while the antitrust case proceeds.

Dan Ives, an analyst at Wedbush Securities, described the new agreement as “a major validation moment for Google” and “a stepping stone” for Apple as the company works to bring its artificial intelligence strategy up to speed through 2026 and beyond.

Apple was reported to have explored alternative partnerships with OpenAI, Anthropic and Perplexity before settling on Google.

The company founded by Steve Jobs has faced growing criticism that it has fallen behind rivals in deploying advanced AI tools, and last month announced that the head of its artificial intelligence division was stepping down.

The company also delayed the launch of an upgraded version of Siri last year and has promised to release it later this year, now supported by Gemini’s capabilities.

Google, Microsoft, OpenAI and other technology groups have been locked in an intense race to lead the fast-moving AI sector, releasing increasingly sophisticated models and features at a rapid pace.

Apple stressed that the partnership does not replace its own AI systems entirely. The company said its in-house platform, Apple Intelligence, will continue to operate on devices such as iPhones and iPads,

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preserving what it called “industry-leading privacy standards” by processing many requests directly on the device.

Quadri Olaitan