Morning Edition · Tuesday, June 9, 2026

Apple Unveils a Gemini-Powered Siri in Tim Cook's Final WWDC

The company rebuilds its voice assistant using Google's model and confirms a leadership change, acknowledging that it had fallen behind in the artificial intelligence race.

Apple used its Worldwide Developers Conference to introduce a rebuilt voice assistant called Siri AI, after sustained criticism that the company had fallen behind in artificial intelligence. Euronews reports that the revised assistant is more conversational, works across the operating system and is offered as a standalone application.

A central detail is what powers it. The new Siri runs on Google's Gemini model, an acknowledgment that Apple is relying on a competitor's technology rather than its own to catch up with rivals. The features are not expected to be available at first in the European Union or China, where regulatory conditions differ.

The event also marked a transition. Tim Cook opened and closed what is expected to be his final keynote as chief executive, and the company confirmed that hardware chief John Ternus will take over in September.

For the largest technology company by market value to rely on an external model is a significant indication of where capability now lies in the industry, and of how much of the artificial intelligence supply chain a hardware-focused firm can control on its own.

What this means

Apple's decision to embed a rival's model concedes that leadership in foundation models is concentrated among a few firms, which has implications for how the profits of the artificial intelligence boom are distributed. The leadership change adds execution risk at the moment Apple is trying to recover its position.

What to watch

Consumer and developer reception of Siri AI when it is released later this year.
Whether regulatory friction keeps the features out of the European Union and China.

Observations to monitor, not financial advice.

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Source: Euronews