Pixel's Magic Cue Isn't Just a Feature. It's Intelligence as OS.
This sounds crazy but hear me out: why Apple will run Gemini by 2027.
Hi, I'm Tara with Strange VC. I decode early patterns in AI and computing as they shape the future. Subscribe to help me keep it free!
In January 2007, BlackBerry executives watched Steve Jobs unveil the iPhone.
At that time, BlackBerry had over 30% of the US smartphone market share, and growing Their users, mostly white-collared professionals, loved the tactile keyboard, the robust security features, and the push email service.
They saw the iPhone as a toy, not a threat.
“It's OK. We'll be fine”.
Famous last words.
For a short while after, they even looked like they were right. BlackBerry sales revenue actually tripled to over $11 billion in the next two years.
Five years later, things took a disastrous turn. BlackBerry fell from 56% of the US smartphone market share in 2009 to a disastrous 1% in 2024.
What the heck happened? Weren’t they doing everything right? They did everything their customers asked for. Better keyboards. More secure email. Faster messaging.
But they optimized for the wrong thing.
This week's Pixel release revealed something that made me think of BlackBerry's downfall.
Magic Cue, the new flagship AI feature on Pixel, pulls information from Gmail, Calendar, Messages, and Phone to surface what you need in the moment. Smart replies with restaurant addresses. Flight confirmations during airline calls. Live translation over phone calls.
Here's what everyone missed: Google isn't just integrating their apps better. They're demonstrating their nuclear option. Intelligence as OS.
Most iPhone users use:
Apple can build the most sophisticated AI ever created. But what happens when Google decides third-party AI can't access Gmail? Or Google Calendar? Or any Google service?
The Data Layer Is the New Platform
BlackBerry lost because they didn't control the new platform - the app ecosystem. They had the hardware, the enterprise relationships, the security. But none of that mattered when developers chose iOS.
Today's uncomfortable truth: Apple doesn't control the data layer on their own devices. Google's AI can analyze your entire digital life - your emails, documents, calendars, search history, location data, YouTube watching patterns. All on Apple's own hardware.
Apple owns the device but Google owns the data exhaust. And in the AI age, data exhaust is everything.
The Battle for Data is the AI War
The next tech war won't be fought over hardware or software. It'll be fought over API access.
Hypothetically - Google could, tomorrow, announce that only Gemini-powered devices get full access to Google services. Not blocking them entirely, that would trigger antitrust. Just degrading them. No smart replies in Gmail. No AI features in Docs. No intelligent suggestions in Maps.
What's Apple going to do? Build competing services? They've tried. Remove Google apps from the App Store? That hurts iPhone users more than Google.
The Nuclear Scenario
Here's the strange prediction: Apple will be forced to run Gemini on iPhones by 2027.
Not as an option. As the default.
The playbook is simple:
Sound insane? BlackBerry thought so too when they were forced to support iPhone apps. That "strategic partnership" was actually a surrender. They became a software company running on their competitor's platform.
Apple x Gemini collab?
Apple might actually make more money as a premium hardware company running Google's AI than competing in AI. Google pays Apple $20 billion a year just for search default. Imagine what they'd pay for intelligence default.
Apple might have to become a hardware manufacturer for Gemini. And they might stay one of the world's most valuable companies doing it.
Agree? Disagree? Tell me why I’m wrong in the comments below.
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Founder at A1 AI - Product Management | Product Strategy | Business Strategy | BizOps
1wtotally see Apple going to the direction of Dell and HP at this rate
Machine Learning | Global Macro
3wEeewwww not gemini
User Experience Lead & Product Builder leveraging AI. Over 15 years designing high-quality, user-centered solutions. Passionate about technology and fostering team collaboration.
1moThat’s not the reality, only Apple truly controls the data, since Google services represent just a small fraction of overall app usage. It's why Apple Intelligence on the long term is the best solution for privacy too. The companies that both build the hardware and develop the software are the ones with real access to the most critical information. Personally, I never trust Google and avoid their services entirely, except for YouTube and Waze. 😎
Investing in the future of computing | Strange VC
1moNews just broke: Apple is exploring using Gemini to power Siri https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2025-08-22/apple-explores-using-google-gemini-ai-to-power-revamped-siri
Operations & Growth Operator in AI, Hardware, and SaaS | Scaling Startup Operations | Fundraising | Driving Growth | Product Delivery
1moFascinating article, Tara. But what stops Google from doing this today with their apps? Why 2027? Isn’t Gemini already being integrated into many of Google’s mobile apps? Or when you say Apple will run Gemini, are you saying that because of the dominance of google apps integrating Gemini, Apple will just use it as its default llm provider? I’m curious on your take on how Apple would turn to rely on Gemini, generally, by way of Google’s apps using it. What is the forcing function that causes Apple to get locked in, rather than use another LLM for its ecosystem? If Apple wants access to the data, would Google be willing to offer it simply if Apple makes Gemini its LLM of choice? What prevents Apple from being powered by multiple LLMs? I am especially curious about your vision implicit in the article of how you see LLM providers expanding into data platforms, and how that translates into data sharing between vendors.