Gemini is Google’s most important product right now, with Google baking its genAI chatbot into as many products as it can. The Pixel 9 served as the key piece of hardware to showcase several new Gemini capabilities, including Gemini Live functionality. That’s the equivalent of OpenAI’s Advanced Voice Mode for ChatGPT, which makes the AI sound like a real human.
But Google isn’t happy rolling out Gemini to as many Android devices as possible. It’s also targeting the iPhone, a potentially lucrative market for Google when it comes to its AI ambitions.
Rumors already say that Apple will soon offer chatbot choices to iPhone users by integrating Google Gemini into Apple Intelligence alongside ChatGPT. The latter will get a period of exclusivity since it’s Apple’s preferred partner for the launch of Apple Intelligence.
Whether or not Gemini comes to Apple Intelligence, Google is testing another way to make Gemini available to iPhone users. The company rolled out a standalone Google Gemini app in some test markets, complete with Gemini Live functionality.
An iPhone user posted screenshots on Reddit that prove the Google Gemini app for iPhone is legitimate. According to 9to5Google, the app is available in the Philippines, but you can’t download it from the App Store in the US. I could not find a version of the app in the EU, but then again, the European block is never among the first regions to receive any new AI app.
The advantage of having a standalone Gemini app for iPhone is that you can talk to the chatbot directly without going through the iPhone’s Google app. That’s currenty the only way to access Google Gemini on iPhone without loading the chatbot in a browser. Gemini Live is not available in the Google app.
Having Gemini Live baked into a standalone Gemini app is even better. I got access to Advanced Voice Mode recently inside the ChatGPT app for iPhone, and it was an interesting experience. The smartphone is probably the place to talk to AI via voice rather than text prompts.
Google will take advantage of the iPhone’s Live Activity feature to let you talk to Gemini Live even when the screen is off or when you’re using the iPhone for something else. ChatGPT’s Advanced Voice Mode works similarly on the iPhone.
Also, if Gemini comes to Apple Intelligence, it won’t be available on most current iPhones. Only the iPhone 15 Pro and iPhone 16 series support Apple Intelligence. A standalone Google Gemini app would help fix that potential problem.
It’s unclear when Google will launch the Gemini app on iPhone, but it’s probably only a matter of time until it happens. Apparently, Google started testing the standalone app only about a week ago.
