$1B a Year for Siri’s AI

🤖 Apple has officially signed a partnership deal with Google, providing for annual payments of around $1 billion to use a custom version of the Gemini model in the Siri voice assistant. According to Bloomberg, the collaboration will begin in early 2026 and will serve as a temporary solution while Apple finishes developing its own artificial intelligence.

What’s happening

The problem is that Siri is one of the most well-known yet most limited digital assistants. Amid the rapid progress in generative AI, Apple risks falling behind, especially after the success of ChatGPT and the rise of OpenAI and Anthropic. In Cupertino, they realize that their own Apple Intelligence system still lags behind market leaders: the current cloud version runs on 150 billion parameters, while Google’s Gemini operates with 1.2 trillion.

To avoid losing users and appearing as a laggard, Apple decided to temporarily integrate Google’s powerful AI into Siri.

Deal Details

According to Bloomberg, the project inside Apple is codenamed Glenwood, and the new version of the voice assistant, expected in spring 2026 with iOS 26.4, has the working title Linwood.

The development is being led by two key figures:

• Mike Rockwell, creator of Vision Pro;
• Craig Federighi, head of software engineering.

Their goal is to integrate Gemini into Siri as the “brain of summarization and planning”:

• Gemini will handle brief summaries (notifications, web pages, texts, emails, etc.);
• It will also serve as a “planner” — the system that determines the logic behind voice command execution.

Apple will retain full control over user data processing — everything will operate through the Apple Private Cloud Compute infrastructure, with no Google access to personal information. Cupertino has already deployed dedicated servers for this project.

Apple’s Own AI

In parallel, the company is developing its own AI model with 1 trillion parameters, expected to launch in 2026. According to Apple representatives, this product will be part of a new direction called Apple Intelligence 2.0 and will allow Siri to reach a new level — effectively becoming a competitor to ChatGPT and Gemini.

However, as Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman notes, for Apple this isn’t just a technical upgrade but a matter of reputation: the company that created the first “smart” voice system back in 2011 is now forced to rent intelligence from a rival.

Why it matters

• For users: Siri will finally be able to understand complex queries, handle context, analyze screens, offer recommendations, and act without constant Google searches.
• For the market: this marks the first large-scale collaboration between two usually competing giants in a decade. If integration goes well, Google gains a new monetization channel for Gemini, while Apple gains technological breathing room before its own AI launch.
• For investors: the deal signals that Apple isn’t waiting on the sidelines. The company is entering the AI race seriously — even if, for now, it’s on rented engines.

Context

Back in mid-2025, Apple also tested other options — including ChatGPT (OpenAI) and Claude (Anthropic) — but chose Gemini due to its flexibility and power. According to insiders, stability and customization potential were decisive factors.

Meanwhile, Apple is gradually integrating AI elements into other products:

• Apple Intelligence is already being built into Notes, Pages, Mail, and FaceTime;
• An AI-SDK for developers is in preparation;
• A new multimodal search engine (text, photo, video) is in the works.

🕰️ Irony of Fate

Siri, once a symbol of innovation, is now becoming Google’s “student.” But, according to Apple, this won’t last long. The company plans to reclaim leadership — not just through a flashy update, but by building a new architecture for human-machine interaction.