Gemini has nothing to fear from the new Siri AI
Android Police 2026-06-27 12:00:10
Context: Apple recently unveiled a much-improved version of its Siri voice assistant at the Worldwide Developers Conference, and it is now available in the first developer beta of iOS 27. The new Siri was built with the help of Google's AI expertise, specifically using Google's technology to build Apple's Foundation Models. This development has raised questions about whether Apple's AI models can match or surpass those of Google's Gemini.
Key Facts
- Apple partnered with Google earlier this year to build the new Siri, but this is not the first time Apple has sought Google's help, as it poached Google's AI chief in 2018 and later held a "bake off" to choose an established AI company to help, with Google coming out on top.
- The new Siri in iOS 27 is a full chatbot with a dedicated app on the iPhone that functions like Google's Gemini, but it is tightly integrated with Apple's operating systems and has a more professional but flat personality.
- Siri and Gemini function similarly but differ in approach and versatility, with Siri best for getting quick answers and Gemini a tool for exploring topics more deeply, offering multiple models, including a "Deep Research" mode.
- Apple has four text-based models in play for Siri, but users do not get to see which one is being used or choose one, reflecting Apple's approach to keeping things simple and avoiding too many options.
- Siri AI excels in handling personal context and privacy, processing requests on-device and using a semantic index to ferret out personal information from emails, calendars, text messages, and more to help answer questions.