The AI frenzy has gripped every smartphone Lord in 2025 . Unfortunately , not all of it has been as radical as on - phase presentation would have you trust . A few , however , have done a howling job with run pragmatic AI features .
Google is one of those names , and it continues to do so even on iPhones — at the cost of make Siri look like an outdated relic . The latest build of Google ’s Gemini app for iPhones puts the AI chatbot everywhere on Apple ’s smartphones , from the lock silver screen to the share sheet .
That ’s a deep integrating , even though Apple would likely never let me replace Siri with Google ’s alternative on myiPhone 16 Pro . At the moment , the position of Siri is so bad that itspromised AI overhaul might take until 2027 to arrive . In the meanwhile , it has to rely on an awkward offload system with ChatGPT when it ca n’t handle a complex question .
Enter Google Gemini ’s up-to-the-minute avatar on the iPhone . calendar month after pull in its way to iPhones , and fully replacing the Google Assistant , Gemini has last chance on a configuration where I wo n’t require to face elsewhere . For example , I can now directly upload single file or link from the Lock Screen , or portion textile from within any app direct into Gemini
Going far beyond Siri
For me , or any individual with a smartphone in their hand , public lavatory is what matters the most when it total to getting tasks done using an AI tool . With the latest app update , I can access Gemini from the Lock Screen , and in a total of six formats through dedicated contraption .
I can trigger the school text chat , plunge the Gemini audio mode for mundane tasks such as localise reminders , or pull upthe fantastic Gemini Live modefor a free - flowing conversation . These widgets work well than Siri for two reasons .
First , if I ask Siri something like “ tell me about the light speed paradox , ” the assistant wo n’t be able to reply it , because that ’s beyond its capacity . For such queries , it will need me whether ChatGPT can take over . That ’s a needless rubbing .
Moreover , Siri will only ask me that question if I’veenabled the ChatGPT integrationfrom within the stage setting app . That ’s another layer of rubbing . Furthermore , I have to enable two freestanding toggles in the Apple Intelligence dashboard to enable this Siri - to - ChatGPT resolution flow .
seize I have the ChatGPT tools ready to go , there ’s another rudimentary scuffle . The answer I get is an extremely condensed variation fitted into a small dropdown corner .
I ca n’t see any of the source where the info was pull from , either . If I seek a more detailed answer , I will have to set up the ChatGPT app .
With Gemini , the flow is quite comfortable . I can tap either the chat , or voice way widget on the ignition lock screen and narrate my question . Once there , I directly land in the Gemini app , where the answer is already being compiled and read out to me ( if I picked voice instead of text chat ) .
In the Gemini mobile app , I can bump a far more detailed breakdown of my answer , with uncontaminating bearing and easy - to - embrace bullet points . While that is already a fulfilling experience of interacting with a chatbot , the Gemini app offers a cluster of useful control , as well .
With a single tap , I can incur related interrogation that other net users force on Google Search , export the prospicient answer as a Doc file , create a shareable link , put it in Gmail draft , and modify the solution in five freestanding way .
I wish my result concise , so I often plunk that pick . As a diary keeper , inquiry and fact - checking is the most important part of my job . Getting my answer from the Siri - ChatGPT nexus wo n’t offer me that facility .
But if I launch Gemini from the Lock Screen , a individual tap is all I need to check the germ of the selective information extend by the chatbot and landed estate directly on a Google Search result interface .
File analysis is a cakewalk
Gemini ’s single file psychoanalysis capability are a sprightliness - saver , and if you rely on Google ’s Files app , it willkick into action automatically . While using Siri , I maintain running into software package wall , when all I needed with an AI help was to make things as dim-witted as potential .
For example , let ’s say I want the AI to intermit down the core findings of a 50 - page research composition . Siri ca n’t do that . And even with its ChatGPT integration enabled , when you establish the assistant , there is no option to upload a file of any variety .
All you get is a textbook box or a mic for voice chat . To get the task done , I have to deploy the ChatGPT app and establish it every time I need its multimodal capacity to lend a paw .
With Gemini , I simply tap a button on the Lock Screen and land direct in the filing cabinet picker windowpane . Once the filing cabinet uploads , I can typecast my query and have the AI explain or find matter for me . If I need to make sense of an image or screenshot , there ’s a dedicated “ Gemini Image ” Lock Screen gubbins available for me .
at last , we have the consecrated television camera view for Gemini , as well . Just likeVisual Intelligence , all I need to do is tip on the Lock Screen thingamajig and land in the camera preview . A shutter click afterward , Gemini is ready to swear out and answer queries based on what the tv camera captured .
On the iPhone , Visual Intelligence can be launched with a long - press of the newCamera Control button . On honest-to-god iPhones , I need tocustomize the Action Buttonto launch it , or tap on the Visual Intelligence icon after pulling down the Control Center .
Once again , Gemini offers more versatility than Siri or Apple Intelligence . In the Control Center , there are a amount of six Gemini crosscut , the same consortium you get for the Lock Screen whatchamacallum . I love this flexibility , because if I ca n’t embrace all the Gemini thingmabob on the Lock Screen , I can but put the rest in the Control Center .
Quick access is not a problem
I recently had a discussion with Digital Trends vertan and Apple expert , Jesse Hollington , about the possibility of Gemini substitute Siri . He mentioned that it ’s a pipedream because Apple would never sideline one of its own products , even if it ’s spoiled . In a nutshell , Gemini will never become the default AI assistant on an iPhone .
Thankfully , Apple ’s own figure pick will let you touch off Gemini with the same kind of ease as Siri . A long press on the power clitoris bring up the Siri interface . But thanks to Apple ’s late hardware updates , you’re able to skip the office clit route and customize the Action Button to set up Gemini .
Thankfully , it ’s a fairly straightforward process . just plunge the Action Button page in the options app , swipe left till you find the Shortcuts bill of fare , and select Gemini from the app list .
What I like the most is that I have a choice to set up Gemini in textbook , or voice mode . Or only hop to the uber - gossipy Gemini Live manner for an spookily human - like conversation in the AI voice of my option .
With Siri , a long - press on the power push button process the voice fundamental interaction mode . To open Siri in school text fashion , you postulate to long - pressing on the navigation bar at the bottom of the screenland . It ’s suspect that you get a more cohesive and ordered experience with Gemini on an iPhone , than Siri itself .
Of naturally , talking with a chatbot is more commodious and immersive than typing away a retentive question . For such conversations , Gemini is noticeably better , especially with the Gemini Live manner , liken to Siri .
Moreover , even for non - paying drug user , Gemini is now able to save inside information from previous conversationsand recall them contextually in the future . This capability makes chatbot conversation a peck more natural . opine of it like an artificial memory board for an artificial brain .
Siri does n’t offer that gizmo , and it might take a while before that come about . As per Bloomberg , that status quo wo n’t change until 2026 , andmight even adulterate into 2027 , before the procreative AI overhaul for Siri come .
The Gemini gems
The enceinte advantage of Siri is that it is integrated with Io at an osmium - level . Yet , nothing too challenging or fruitful has issue forth out of that mystifying desegregation . Siri ca n’t interact with third - party apps , yet . It is still heavily reliant on ChatGPT for everything that one expect from a digital assistant in the procreative AI era .
On the other hand , we have Gemini , which can already interact with Google ’s suite of apps , and even third - political party options such as Spotify . At the affection of this organisation is extension phone , and it ’s only going to blow up in the penny-pinching future .
For anyone who works across Google putz such as Docs and Maps , Gemini offers a seamless ticket . The ChatGPT app is not exactly a slouch , as it offers its own solidification of benefits , but none that go far and beyond what Gemini can execute .
With aChatGPT Plus subscriptionthat cost $ 20 per month , you get gamey Indian file upload terminus ad quem , advanced spokesperson fashion , access to latest AI models , Deep Research , and the ability to make custom GPT agents . Gemini offer all those quickness , and then some more , for the same monetary value .
If you get a Gemini forward-looking subscription via the Google One AI Premium plan , you get entree to a smattering of extra perks such as 2 TB of swarm storage , the latest Gemini 2.0 serial publication simulation , NotebookLM Plus access code , and a rewarding consolidation across all Google product .
Deep Research , in particular , is my front-runner . With a single detent , I can export the entire research material into a Doc filing cabinet , and turn it into an immersive podcast using Notebook LM without ever leaving the Google ecosystem .
The amount total of the arguments here is that Gemini not only offers better economic value over Siri , both quantitative and qualitative , but also ease of memory access .
For a tool develop with the sole intent of make our living promiscuous , it ’s a fundamental win . It ’s just a ignominy that a Google tool is doing it good on iPhones than Apple ’s once - pioneering AI assistant .
