Apple has found an “interim solution” to its AI problem: a $1 billion-a-year deal with Google. This contract will see Google’s 1.2 trillion parameter Gemini AI do the “heavy lifting” for the new “Linwood” Siri, handling all complex “summariser” and “planner” tasks.
This move is part of the “Glenwood” project, Apple’s internal push to fix its lagging assistant. Google’s “ultrapowerful” model was chosen after it dominated a “bake-off” against OpenAI and Anthropic.
The new Siri, set for a spring release, will be a hybrid. Apple’s 150-billion parameter models will manage simple requests, while Google’s AI will power the multi-step, complex commands.
This is a reluctant step for Apple, admitting it needs a rival’s tech to compete. Meanwhile, Apple’s teams are pushing to build a 1T+ model to replace Gemini, but it’s a significant challenge.
The deal’s lynchpin is privacy. The Gemini model will be hosted on Apple’s “walled-off” Private Cloud Compute servers. This architecture, overseen by Craig Federighi and Mike Rockwell, ensures Google gets its money but no access to user data.