Apple calls on Google to help smarten up Siri and bring other AI features to the iPhone

In a significant tech industry development, Apple has announced a partnership with Google to enhance its artificial intelligence capabilities, particularly its virtual assistant Siri, which has lagged behind competitors in the rapidly evolving AI landscape.

The collaboration, announced Monday in a joint statement from the two technology giants, will integrate Google’s Gemini technology into Apple’s suite of AI features, collectively branded as “Apple Intelligence.” This move comes as Apple attempts to catch up in the AI race after competitors established early leads.

Apple had previously promised to introduce substantial AI features to the iPhone in 2024 through a software upgrade, but many of these features remain in development. Most notably, the company’s planned overhaul of Siri—intended to transform the often-criticized assistant into a more conversational and versatile tool—has faced significant delays.

The delay in Apple’s AI implementation has not gone unnoticed by competitors. Google subtly highlighted the iPhone’s AI shortcomings in advertising campaigns for its latest Pixel phone. Apple was eventually forced to acknowledge last year that the complete Siri upgrade wouldn’t be available until sometime in 2026.

For Google, securing Apple’s endorsement represents a major strategic victory. The search giant has been aggressively expanding its AI capabilities through Gemini technology across its product portfolio, including its core search engine and Gmail services. This expansion has intensified Google’s competition with OpenAI, whose ChatGPT is already available as an option on iPhone devices.

Wedbush Securities analyst Dan Ives described the Apple-Google partnership as a “major validation moment for Google” in a research note published Monday.

The market has responded positively to Google’s AI advancements. Alphabet Inc., Google’s parent company, reached a significant milestone Monday when its market valuation surpassed $4 trillion for the first time. This achievement places Alphabet approximately $150 billion ahead of Apple in market capitalization—a notable reversal for Apple, which for years held the title of world’s most valuable company before AI reshuffled market priorities.

Alphabet joins an exclusive club of companies that have achieved a $4 trillion market valuation. AI chipmaker Nvidia was the first to reach this threshold in July of last year, followed by Apple and Microsoft, though the latter two have since fallen below that mark. Nvidia briefly exceeded $5 trillion in market value in late October before retreating amid concerns that the massive investments in AI technology might be creating an investment bubble.

Alphabet’s stock has performed exceptionally well since early September, when Google successfully avoided a breakup attempt by the U.S. government following a ruling that had declared its search engine an illegal monopoly. A federal judge ordered changes that investors widely interpreted as relatively minor, resulting in a 57% increase in Alphabet’s stock price since then—generating an additional $1.4 trillion in shareholder value.

The ruling also preserved the longstanding search partnership between Google and Apple, though with some modifications. Under this arrangement, Google pays Apple more than $20 billion annually to remain the default search engine on iPhones and other Apple products.

This collaboration comes at a critical moment for both companies as they navigate the competitive AI landscape. For Apple, the partnership provides access to advanced AI technology while it continues developing its own capabilities. For Google, it represents both validation of its AI investments and expanded access to Apple’s massive user base, strengthening its position against competitors like OpenAI in the increasingly important AI sector.