While the move signals a shift in Apple’s AI strategy, the larger question remains: can this new Siri help Apple catch up with Android in the AI race?
For years, Apple has focused on privacy, on-device processing, and tight ecosystem control. That approach remains, but the inclusion of Google’s models suggests a stronger push towards capability and competitiveness, particularly in areas where rivals have moved faster.
What Gemini-powered Siri is expected to bring
Apple first outlined its AI direction for Siri at the Worldwide Developers Conference (WWDC) 2024. The upcoming version is expected to build on that vision and deliver a more integrated experience.
At the core is context awareness. Siri is expected to understand what is on screen, track activity across apps, and suggest relevant actions. This marks a shift from command-based interaction to a more situational model.
Cross-app functionality is another key upgrade. Instead of manually switching between apps, users should be able to issue natural requests that span multiple applications, combining actions into a single workflow.
Voice interaction is also expected to become more conversational. Users may be able to interrupt, refine queries, and engage in a more fluid exchange, similar to current AI systems on Android.
Apple is also expected to expand multimodal capabilities, allowing Siri to process visual inputs alongside text and voice.
Together, these upgrades point towards a system where AI acts as a continuous layer across the device, rather than a set of isolated features.
What Apple Intelligence offers today
Apple Intelligence already includes several AI-driven features:
-
Writing tools and text summarisation -
Notification summaries -
Contextual understanding within Apple apps -
Integration across services such as Photos, Messages, and Notes
Apple’s approach remains privacy-first. Much of the processing happens on-device or within controlled cloud environments, differentiating it from more cloud-heavy models used by competitors.
There is also flexibility in some cases. Users can route certain queries to external models such as ChatGPT.
However, many advanced capabilities demonstrated by Apple remain:
-
Limited in scope -
Inconsistently available -
Part of a phased rollout
This creates a gap between what Apple has shown and what users currently experience.
Where Android stands today
Android already offers a more mature, system-level AI experience, particularly on Pixel devices.
Features such as contextual understanding, real-time summarisation, conversational voice interaction, and cross-app workflows are integrated into daily use rather than appearing as standalone tools.
Long-standing capabilities like call screening, spam filtering, live transcription, and structured summaries have evolved into standard expectations.
Beyond Google, other Android brands are also expanding AI capabilities:
-
OPPO and OnePlus offer AI Mind Space for capturing and recalling information -
Nothing provides Essential Space for idea capture -
Samsung supports multiple AI assistants, including Bixby and Perplexity
These layers extend Android’s AI ecosystem beyond Google’s own implementation.
The deeper gap: Execution, not features
At a high level, both platforms are moving towards similar capabilities:
-
Context-aware assistants -
Cross-app workflows -
Conversational AI -
Multimodal understanding
However, the difference lies in execution.
On Android:
-
Features are already deployed -
They are integrated into everyday workflows -
They appear consistently and proactively
On Apple devices
-
The foundation is in place -
The approach is more controlled and privacy-focused -
The full experience is still evolving
There is also a philosophical divide. Android tends to be more proactive, surfacing suggestions even without user input. Apple remains more restrained, prioritising control and predictability.
The reality in 2026
Android, led by Google’s Gemini integration and supported by multiple manufacturers, currently offers a more continuous AI experience.
Apple’s implementation is evolving, but remains more measured and privacy-centric.
The partnership with Google reflects a shift. It signals that Apple is willing to rely on external models to strengthen its AI capabilities.
The AI race is no longer about feature count. It is about how seamlessly those features work in everyday use.
What happens next
A Gemini-powered Siri could narrow the gap. But matching Android will require more than improved capabilities.
Apple will need to match:
-
Consistency across apps and tasks -
Frequency of AI interaction in daily use -
Depth of ecosystem integration
The challenge is not just Google. It is the broader Android ecosystem that has already embedded AI deeply into user experience.
Siri’s overhaul may bring Apple closer. But catching up will depend on how quickly those capabilities translate into everyday use.
