Apple is about to be different.

Apple's willingness to collaborate with Google to equip Siri with Gemini could help it avoid failure in the AI ​​race, at least in the near future.

Apple's AI strategy remains a hot topic at the company. In June 2025, Bloomberg reported that Apple executives were considering using third-party AI models following the disappointing launch of Apple Intelligence. This news sent shockwaves through the internal model development team, prompting the company to quickly issue a statement.

Apple's AI and Siri leaders, including Mike Rockwell and John Giannandrea, reportedly held a meeting with employees in the platform modeling division. The leadership reassured them that the company would not abandon the model.

Despite Apple's message, not many in the modeling group believed this. According to analyst Mark Gurman, Apple Intelligence is clearly lagging behind its competitors, not to mention the delay in Siri's release is damaging the company's reputation.

The reason Apple partnered with Google.

In the following months, Apple's platform modeling division continuously lost talent, including team leader Ruoming Pang.

"At that time, the company was in discussions with both Anthropic and OpenAI to provide models for Siri and partially support Apple Intelligence."

Initially, Google wasn't a potential partner. Apple didn't consider the company's model the best, and Google itself was embroiled in an antitrust lawsuit with the US government , partly related to its agreement with Apple regarding the Safari search engine," Gurman wrote.

By August 2025, negotiations with Anthropic had stalled. The startup was seeking a multi-billion dollar contract over many years, which was not advantageous for Apple.

From left to right: Tim Cook, John Giannandrea, and Craig Federighi. Photo: Bloomberg .

Collaborating with OpenAI also faces several challenges, as the company continuously recruits talent from Apple, pursuing its ambition to launch its own hardware designed by Jony Ive. These factors could create strategic conflicts.

Google was the only name left. After evaluation, Apple found Gemini to have improved significantly in just a few months. Furthermore, Google was willing to accept a financing structure that Apple deemed reasonable.

Furthermore, the judge's conclusion that the $20 billion -a-year search agreement between Apple and Google does not need to be canceled reduces the risk of the two parties continuing their collaboration.

Apple and Google finalized the agreement in November 2025. Google will provide the Gemini model for Siri and Apple Intelligence features.

Initially, the models will run on Apple's Private Cloud Compute servers. Once the new version of Siri is perfected and deeply integrated into iOS 27, the model will upgrade and run directly on Google's infrastructure.

When will the new version of Siri be available?

In early January, the agreement was first publicly announced by Google. As expected, Apple maintained a discreet attitude, only confirming the information to reporters but not making a public announcement on social media or its website.

"It might seem awkward that Apple has to rely on partners to fuel its AI ambitions, but customers don't care about that. They just want Siri to work well, reliable AI features, and chatbots that can compete with ChatGPT or Gemini."

"For most users, Apple is a company that focuses on products; the origin of the technology is largely irrelevant," Bloomberg analyst Mark Gurman emphasized.

In the latest Power On news, Gurman stated that Apple plans to introduce a new version of Siri in the latter half of February in the iOS 26.4 update. That's when the company expects to publicly announce its agreement with Google.

Gemini chatbot on Samsung phones. Photo: Bloomberg .

Internally, Apple calls the technology Apple Foundation Models version 10, which appears to still be entirely developed by the company. The model has approximately 1.2 trillion parameters and runs on internal servers.

However, the Siri upgrade in February was just the beginning. According to a Bloomberg writer, Apple is expected to announce a completely new version of Siri at WWDC 2026. Codenamed Campos, the system will have a new architecture and interface, operating similarly to current chatbots.

"The new Siri will have the ability to converse, recognize relevant context, and maintain dialogue. Essentially, it fulfills users' desires for ChatGPT, Gemini, and Copilot."

The new Siri will still be based on Gemini but is more advanced, used internally under the name Apple Foundation Models version 11. This model is expected to compete with Gemini 3, significantly surpassing the Siri support model on iOS 26.4," Gurman added.

To improve accuracy and responsiveness, Apple and Google are in discussions to run Siri directly on Google's servers with high-performance tensor processors (TPUs), instead of Apple's servers.

A new approach

The shift to the Gemini model reflects a fundamental change in Apple's AI strategy. According to Software Engineering Director Craig Federighi, Apple will benefit more from partnering with Google rather than relying solely on its internal model, at least for the time being.

Federighi took control of Apple's AI division early last year, following a disappointing tenure by his predecessor, John Giannandrea. Since then, Federighi has brought about many changes.

"A major priority in 2026 is an improved Safari browser for AI, competing with new products from Perplexity and OpenAI. Planned features include assessing the reliability of documents and data, and cross-referencing information from multiple sources," Gurman revealed.

Apple Intelligence's settings screen. Photo: Digital Trends .

Some work on the new version of Safari is reportedly on hold, although there is still time to complete it before June, the date of the WWDC conference. The World Knowledge Answers project, which competes with ChatGPT and Perplexity and uses Apple's internal model, has also been scaled back.

Apple also envisioned standalone chatbot experiences within apps like Safari, TV, Health, Music, and Podcasts, and developed an AI-powered upgrade for the Calendar app. However, some plans have gone back to square one, with the company planning to deeply integrate Siri into apps instead of offering a separate chatbot.

Currently, the staff on Apple's AI modeling team remains largely unchanged, although some engineers have left to seek higher salaries and a more stable environment.

According to Gurman, Apple came close to acquiring an AI modeling company a few months ago, but the deal fell through at the last minute. By increasing its reliance on third-party models, the company may avoid failure in the short term.

Apple's team specializing in AI research and academic publications still exists, but it has lost many talented individuals as its strategic direction has become clearer.

Of course, this isn't the first time Apple has been a latecomer. The company used Intel CPUs for 15 years before switching to its own designed chips. Apple also relied entirely on Qualcomm's mobile modems before producing its own, first introduced in the iPhone 16e under the name C1.

Perplexity's AI browser. Photo: Perplexity .

In other areas, such as search engines, Apple is happy to partner with Google. Therefore, the big question is whether the company will prioritize large-scale development or continue the partnership in the near future.

The second approach means Apple views AI models as a standard feature in its products, similar to storage (which can be purchased from third parties) rather than a core component (which needs to be developed in-house) like the modem or processor chip.

A while ago, The Information reported that Apple was developing a compact personal AI device that could be clipped onto clothing. The product would feature two cameras, three microphones, an external speaker, a battery, and inductive charging technology. OpenAI also garnered attention for developing a similar personal AI device, while companies that previously sold such products (like Humane) were not very successful.

According to Fast Company , carefully analyzing technology trends remains part of Apple's culture. This slow approach can help the company assess the true scale of AI trends, while also further analyzing core customer needs and desires.

Source: https://znews.vn/chien-luoc-moi-cua-apple-post1623104.html