Google Gemini

Gemini is both Google's AI model and the name of the app that runs it. It launched in late 2023, and in 2024 Google folded its earlier chatbot, Bard, into the Gemini name.

A common mistake is treating Gemini as if it were a company. It's a brand, not a company — the company behind it is Google DeepMind. To sum up: Google DeepMind builds it, Gemini is the name it's sold under, and it's distributed through Google AI Studio or Vertex AI. All three sit inside Google.

These days Gemini also shows up a lot as something Google licenses out to others. The best-known case is Apple choosing Gemini to power the new Siri. That's where the "why is an Apple product running on a Google model" storyline comes from.

As of August 2026, the latest version is Gemini 3.7 Flash. Flash is the name for the fast, cheap tier, but lately it's been performing like a flagship — there have been reports of it beating Claude on coding benchmarks. The Gemini app has passed 1 billion monthly users.

"Gemini is coming to Apple's Siri" — this doesn't mean a company called Gemini partnered with Apple; it means Apple is licensing the model built by Google DeepMind.