According to a report by Bloomberg and picked up by multiple outlets, Apple Inc. is nearing a deal to pay Google LLC roughly $1 billion per year for access to a custom version of Google’s Gemini AI model in order to overhaul its digital assistant Siri. The deal reportedly would leverage Gemini’s ~1.2 trillion-parameter model and serve as an interim solution while Apple ramps up its own in-house AI capabilities. This marks a notable reversal for Apple—traditionally in control of both hardware and software in its ecosystem—and the deal is set to fuel a major shift in how Siri handles complex tasks and context. The revamped Siri (codenamed “Linwood”) is expected to debut as part of iOS 26.4 next spring.
Sources: TechCrunch, Reuters
Key Takeaways
– Apple paying Google for AI access signals it is behind in the AI race and willing to outsource temporarily rather than build from scratch.
– The deal with Google’s Gemini model gives Apple a high-complexity AI engine (~1.2 trillion parameters) to power Siri’s next iteration, far exceeding its current internal models.
– While this collaboration is a stop-gap, Apple still intends to develop its own in-house AI for the long term, keeping control of the ecosystem intact.
In-Depth
In a strategic pivot that catches many by surprise, Apple is reportedly preparing to license Artificial Intelligence capabilities from Google to power its voice assistant Siri. The deal, said to be worth around $1 billion annually, would access Google’s latest Gemini AI model — a system estimated at 1.2 trillion parameters, significantly larger and more capable than Apple’s existing AI stack. For a company that built its reputation on end-to-end integration and proprietary hardware-software synergy, this agreement marks a major shift in philosophy, reflecting the company’s urgency to catch up in a rapidly evolving AI landscape.
The timing is telling. Apple has repeatedly delayed major AI enhancements for Siri, with internal sources indicating frustration over progress and competition mounting from rivals like Amazon and Google whose assistants are rapidly advancing. By opting to license Gemini, Apple gains access to a best-in-class engine while it continues building its own internal AI infrastructure. In effect, this is a “buy time” strategy: use external horsepower now, keep the ecosystem intact, and plan a transition back to self-sufficiency later.
From a business standpoint, this move carries both opportunity and risk. On one hand, it enables Apple to field a substantially improved Siri relatively quickly, helping uphold its premium position in mobile and smart device ecosystems. On the other hand, relying on a direct competitor for cutting-edge AI presents strategic dependency, especially given how critical AI will become to future services and user engagement. Questions will likely emerge around data access, update parity, and how deeply Google will participate in Apple’s ecosystem — or how much Apple controls the deployment.
Ultimately, Apple’s core aspiration remains intact: to deliver an ecosystem where hardware, software, and services form a cohesive whole under the Apple-branded umbrella. This deal appears to be a tactical maneuver on the path toward that vision, rather than a wholesale change in direction. In the long term, Apple still intends to replace the licensed Gemini functionality with a fully in-house solution. But for now, the company is acknowledging it cannot afford to wait — launching what may be described as “Siri version 2.0” with someone else’s engine under the hood.
As the rollout approaches next spring with iOS 26.4 and the internal codename “Linwood,” all eyes will be on how the improved Siri performs — both in terms of user experience and in how effectively Apple leverages this partnership to maintain control of its technology stack. The broader implication: the AI race isn’t just about models and servers, it’s now about strategic alliances, ecosystems, and whether the big players can adapt fast enough.