(Reuters) – Apple is in talks to incorporate Google’s Gemini artificial intelligence engine into the iPhone, Bloomberg News reported on Monday, citing people familiar with the matter.
Apple also recently held discussions with Microsoft-backed OpenAI to consider using its model, the report added.
Apple is preparing new features as part of the upcoming iPhone iOS 18 based on self-developed AI models, including the ability to create images and write essays based on simple prompts. The company is looking for partners to enhance its capabilities, the report said.
Bloomberg said the two sides have not decided on the terms or branding of the AI pact, nor have they finalized how it will be implemented until June, when Apple plans to hold its annual Worldwide Developers Conference. It added that it was unlikely that a deal would be announced.
Apple, Google and OpenAI did not immediately respond to Reuters’ requests for comment outside business hours.
Apple has been slower to deploy generative AI, which can generate human-like responses to written prompts, than rivals Microsoft and Google, which are building it into their products.
Last month, Apple CEO Tim Cook said the company would provide more details later this year about its plans to leverage generative AI, adding that the company is investing “significantly” in the area. He added that he is doing so.
Apple and Google already have a deal that makes Google the default search engine for Apple’s Safari web browser.
But the United States and its allies allege that Google has illegally stifled competition by paying billions of dollars to Apple and other business partners to make its search engine the default on most mobile phones and web browsers. The partnership is under regulatory scrutiny.
Google also partnered with Samsung in January to introduce multiple generative AI technology products to the South Korean company’s Galaxy S24 series of smartphones.
(Reporting by Jahnavi Nidumolu in Bengaluru; Editing by Savio D’Souza and Janane Venkatraman)
