You'd think Apple can afford anything. At least that's what I would think too. However, it seems the company is also... well, budget-cautious. When it comes to Siri's AI upgrade, one deal reportedly cost a bit more than Apple was willing to pay.
Apple considered Claude powering Siri
According to Mark Gurman, the Cupertino tech giant has had talks with Anthropic about its Claude AI powering the Siri upgrade. However, reportedly the company required "several billion dollars a year", and a deal may not have been signed because of that fee. Reportedly, Apple's internal business relies on Anthropic's Claude, though, but Apple chose to partner with Gemini for Siri instead.
It's not confirmed how much Apple would be paying Google for Gemini AI. However, it's likely the fee is lower than what Anthropic reportedly wanted. Unconfirmed reports claim that the deal with Google could cost around $1 billion per year for Cupertino to use Gemini.
Image Credit - Apple
Gurman also claims that the deal with Anthropic could've doubled on an annual basis for the next year. Which would, obviously, make this offering even more expensive. Likely, in comparison, Google's offer seemed a steal.
Meanwhile, Google is reportedly paying $20 billion for Apple to keep its primary search engine position on Apple devices.
Recommended For You
Apple is also in a relationship with OpenAI, with the company's own generative AI, ChatGPT, used to power current Apple Intelligence features on supported iPhones and devices. The Cupertino giant has confirmed that it will allow users to choose which AI model they want in the future.
If you could choose Siri’s AI brain, what would you pick?
Apple and Generative AI
In comparison to its competitors, Apple is quite late to the generative AI game. However, Apple is said to be working on its own AI models as well, and in the future, it could potentially not rely on Google, Anthropic, or anyone else that offers AI technology.
But for the moment, it seems Apple is not ready for this step. So far, Tim Cook has already stated that Apple's own AI models would not be replacing Gemini in the revamped Siri.
Apple would be making Siri much smarter with the help of Gemini. The upgraded Siri will reportedly be able to use information from what's on your screen and from your apps to give you more helpful answers, like looking up a flight you asked about or helping with reminders.
The upgraded Siri is expected to come quite soon now, actually. Apple reportedly plans to show the new Siri this February with the first beta version of iOS 26.4. The public is said to get iOS 26.4 in March or April of this year.
Claude AI won't be used for Siri, but hopefully Gemini will be better
The competition between different generative AI models is stronger than ever. Claude has been steadily improving as well and gaining popularity. Gemini, however, is also strong. The thing is, different AI models have their strengths and weaknesses. Some are good at one thing, while others are good at another. In my opinion, currently Gemini is good at most things.
I am beyond excited to finally get to see this upgraded Siri. I've been waiting for it since Apple mentioned Apple Intelligence at first, all the way back with iPhone 16 and that year's WWDC. Of course that didn't come to fruition when Apple promised, which disappointed quite a few Apple fans (me included), but hopefully the deal with Gemini will make it up to us.
As for Claude, apparently, if the reports are to be believed, it wanted too much. Well, what really interests me isn't which generative AI model does it, but doing it right. So hopefully Gemini would be able to do that.
We'll have to wait and see, though. Hopefully, we won't have to wait too long for it anymore.
Try Noble Mobile for only $10
Get unlimited talk, text, & data on the T-Mobile 5G Network plus earn cash back for data you don’t use.
Izzy, a tech enthusiast and a key part of the PhoneArena team, specializes in delivering the latest mobile tech news and finding the best tech deals. Her interests extend to cybersecurity, phone design innovations, and camera capabilities. Outside her professional life, Izzy, a literature master's degree holder, enjoys reading, painting, and learning languages. She's also a personal growth advocate, believing in the power of experience and gratitude. Whether it's walking her Chihuahua or singing her heart out, Izzy embraces life with passion and curiosity.
A discussion is a place, where people can voice their opinion, no matter if it
is positive, neutral or negative. However, when posting, one must stay true to the topic, and not just share some
random thoughts, which are not directly related to the matter.
Things that are NOT allowed:
Off-topic talk - you must stick to the subject of discussion
Offensive, hate speech - if you want to say something, say it politely
Spam/Advertisements - these posts are deleted
Multiple accounts - one person can have only one account
Impersonations and offensive nicknames - these accounts get banned
To help keep our community safe and free from spam, we apply temporary limits to newly created accounts:
New accounts created within the last 24 hours may experience restrictions on how frequently they can
post or comment.
These limits are in place as a precaution and will automatically lift.
Moderation is done by humans. We try to be as objective as possible and moderate with zero bias. If you think a
post should be moderated - please, report it.
Have a question about the rules or why you have been moderated/limited/banned? Please,
contact us.
FCC OKs Cingular\'s purchase of AT&T Wireless
Things that are NOT allowed:
To help keep our community safe and free from spam, we apply temporary limits to newly created accounts: