Apple is preparing a major Apple AI upgrade as it moves closer to a reported US$1 billion per year deal with Google to use its Gemini artificial intelligence model inside Siri. The move would give Siri a big leap in intelligence and keep Apple in the race with rivals that already offer advanced AI assistants. The upgraded Siri is expected to arrive around spring 2026 as part of iOS 26.4.
Gemini To Drive the Next Apple AI Upgrade for Siri
Apple currently runs Siri on its own cloud AI system, estimated at 150 billion parameters. Under the new agreement, Siri will connect to Google’s Gemini model, which has around 1.2 trillion parameters. This shift will allow Siri to handle more complex questions, follow context across conversations, summarise content, and plan tasks with several steps.
Key technical details of the Apple AI upgrade
- Deal size: about US$1 billion per year
- Target launch: spring 2026 with iOS 26.4
- Current Siri model: about 150 billion parameters
- Gemini model: about 1.2 trillion parameters
- Internal Siri revamp codename: “Linwood”
- Wider Apple AI project codename: “Glenwood”
- Leaders: Craig Federighi and Mike Rockwell
Apple still plans to build its own large scale AI model with around 1 trillion parameters and sees Gemini as a strong but temporary solution while its in house work continues.
On privacy, Apple will keep Gemini running on its Private Cloud Compute servers so that user data does not sit on Google systems. Processing will stay session-based, with no data stored between requests, in line with Apple’s long-standing privacy message. To support Gemini, Apple will need to expand its cloud hardware, which could increase costs and infrastructure demands.
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Apple reportedly tested other models, including OpenAI’s GPT and Anthropic’s Claude, before choosing Gemini for its mix of performance, context handling, and ease of integration. In regions such as China, where Google services are not available, Apple will rely on its own models and local partners like Alibaba.
If the deal closes and the Apple AI upgrade rolls out as planned, the Gemini powered Siri could reset expectations for what a voice assistant can do on the iPhone.
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