Google is holding it's annual Cloud Next '26 conference this week and Apple made a surprising appearance during the opening keynote speech. Google Cloud CEO Thomas Kurian highlighted a list of partner companies including Apple as part of the speech.
“Earlier this year, we announced a monumental partnership with one of the world’s most iconic brands that will bring the power of our technology to users around the world,” Kurian said.
Kurian is referring to the deal announced by both companies back in January. The partnership is supposed to bring smart conversations, more personality and privacy safeguards to Apple Intelligence and Siri.
He went to say that Google is collaborating with Apple "to develop the next generation of Apple Foundation models based on Gemini technology. These models will help power future Apple Intelligence features, including a more personalized Siri coming later this year."
It's a surprising announcement since Apple has yet to announce when the new Siri will arrive outside of promises of "2026."
The relevant portion is about 28 minutes into his speech, which you can watch here.
What Gemini means for Siri
The expectation is that Gemini-Siri will be a major part of iOS 27 which should debut in September alongside the iPhone 18 Pro models and the iPhone Fold.
Apple is likely to reveal major iOS 27 features in June during WWDC 2026, where we should hear more about Gemini-powered Apple Intelligence features and Siri.
Developer and public beta tests typically release following WWDC in June and July so that should give us an early look this summer.
Per Bloomberg's Mark Gurman, Siri 2.0 should offer a more "chatbot-like experience" and should be more of an on-device agentic AI for your phone.
Apple has publicly struggled to get AI and a revamped Siri properly released since both were promised in 2024. This Gemini collaboration may finally fulfill Apple's ambitions.
