Sundar Pichai, the CEO of Google, and Tim Cook, CEO of Apple are depicted as the two companies form an alliance.

Apple Expected to Partner with Google to Advance Its Gemini AI Product

Apple is rumored to be entering a partnership with Google to leverage its Gemini AI product, hinting at the company’s shift towards AI technology. CEO Tim Cook has expressed excitement about sharing their ongoing work in AI later this year. This move follows criticism that Apple is late to the AI game, according to a story on Inc.com.

The rumored partnership with Google would involve licensing some of Gemini’s features to power certain AI features in new versions of Apple’s iPhone and iPad software. Gemini AI system has “multimodal” powers, meaning it can both accept and produce text-based and image-based information, making it more useful than simple text-based chatbots.

Apple is also reported to have purchased DarwinAI, a Canadian AI startup known for making AI systems smaller and faster. This acquisition aligns with Apple’s priority of keeping AI systems operating on-device, rather than in the cloud, allowing Apple to keep users’ AI data more under their control. It’s also reported that Apple has been working on its own multimodal large language AI models, similar to Google Gemini, and has revealed details on its “MM1” AI system.

Apple’s move towards AI, including the Google deal, the DarwinAI purchase, and the MM1 research, indicates that Apple is making a big push into AI this year. Despite criticism for being “late” to the AI game, Apple has been working on AI for years, with AI systems integrated into their range of chips for mobile devices and Mac computers.

This shift towards AI will impact the millions of developers who write Apple apps, as well as the many business users of Apple systems. Developers may find Apple directly supporting their AI coding efforts with dedicated AI API features. Meanwhile, business users of iPhones and Macs will find their systems mirroring rival AI efforts, with more business-enabling intelligence embedded into software and hardware. With significant capital to invest, Apple could potentially become the leading AI company.

read more at inc.com