Apple and Google announced a multi-year partnership on January 12, 2026, to rebuild Siri using Google’s Gemini artificial intelligence. The deal is valued at an estimated $1 billion annually. It marks a significant change for Apple. Siri has trailed behind other AI competitors. Apple's "careful evaluation" concluded Google’s technology provided the most capable foundation for its next-generation features. A Strategic Alliance The partnership comes at a critical time. Apple has been seen as behind in the generative AI race. After delaying its AI-enhanced Siri throughout 2025, the company faced pressure to compete with other assistants. By outsourcing AI model development to Google, Apple is choosing speed over independence. This allows the company to focus on user experience and hardware integration while using Google’s data centers and models. Privacy Considerations Apple's main challenge is maintaining user privacy. The companies have emphasized that Google provides the "engine," but the data remains with Apple. Private Cloud Compute: Complex queries will be processed using Apple’s server architecture, not Google’s. On-Device Processing: Core features will run locally on iPhone and iPad hardware, ensuring personal data is not stored or seen by external servers.
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Expected User Experience The revamped, "more personalized" Siri is expected to launch with iOS 26.4 in March or April 2026. The update will introduce: On-Screen Awareness: Siri will understand and interact with on-screen content. Deeper App Control: Users can issue complex commands across multiple apps. Advanced Reasoning: Siri will act as a digital agent capable of planning and summarization. Market Impact The announcement has reshaped the financial landscape. News of the deal pushed Alphabet’s (Google’s parent company) market valuation above $4 trillion. For Google, the deal is a distribution win, placing its AI model in over 2.2 billion active Apple devices. The future of Apple’s partnership with OpenAI is uncertain. Analysts suggest Gemini's integration into Siri may push OpenAI into a secondary role. The "New Siri" is a rare alliance between two rivals who have decided that, in the era of AI, they are more powerful together than apart. These analyses examine the Apple-Google deal to revamp Siri with Gemini AI, discussing the technology's capabilities, market reception, and privacy safeguards.
Marques Brownlee
