Apple Admits: “Google’s technology provides the most effective foundations” for AI

In a move that marks a shift in the dynamics of Silicon Valley, Apple has officially confirmed the launch of a strategic collaboration with Google.

The Cupertino giant will integrate the Gemini models to power future versions of Siri and the features of the Apple Intelligence suite.

The news, which had been circulating as rumors for months, represents a rare moment in which Apple openly acknowledges the technological superiority of a direct competitor in a key sector.

Apple and Google: a multi-year agreement for the future of Siri (and more)

The confirmation came via a statement released to Jim Cramer of CNBC, in which the Tim Cook-led company explained the reasons behind this unexpected choice. Departing from the usual rhetoric based on total self-sufficiency, Apple stated:

“After careful evaluation, we have determined that Google’s technology provides the most capable foundations for Apple’s Foundation Models and we are excited about the new innovative experiences it will unlock for our users“.

According to CNBC, the agreement between the two tech giants is configured as a multi-year partnership. The agreement provides that Apple uses Gemini models and Google’s cloud infrastructure as the engine for the future iterations of its “Apple Foundation Models“.

Although the official statement does not go into technical details or precise timelines, the financial network suggests that the first features resulting from this synergy will be launched “later this year“.

This integration is aimed at solving one of the most evident challenges that emerged after the Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) 2024. During the event, Apple unveiled the Apple Intelligence ecosystem, promising advanced tools such as the Writing Tools, Image Playground and the Genmoji.

However, the true awaited revolution, namely a fully redesigned version of Siri capable of understanding personal context, performing in-app actions and being aware of what happens on the screen, has suffered significant delays.

In a statement released last May to blogger John Gruber, Apple had admitted that the realization of these features was taking more time than expected.

The figures and the market context

The confirmation today validates months of in-depth reporting, particularly those by Mark Gurman of Bloomberg. According to the journalist’s gathered rumors, Apple will pay Google an estimated amount around $1 billion per year for access to the Gemini models.

Bloomberg also reported a notable technical detail: the new version of Siri will be powered by an AI model of a whopping 1.2 trillion parameters, a compute power required to compete with current market standards.

From a financial and strategic standpoint, the agreement comes at a delicate moment for Cupertino. Apple has largely remained on the fringes of the AI frenzy that swept Wall Street since the OpenAI’s ChatGPT launch at the end of 2022.

This perception of delay has increased pressure on the iPhone maker to offer a convincing response to rivals such as Google, OpenAI and Anthropic.

The situation is also reflected in the stock markets: last week, Alphabet surpassed Apple’s market capitalization for the first time since 2019, with the search giant crossing the 4 trillion dollars value.

Nevertheless, the partnership news has pushed up the shares of both companies, perhaps marking the start of a necessary competitive truce to dominate the next era of computing.