//And this is the crux. How will Google—and by proxy, Samsung—respond to Apple’s AI deployment with iOS 18.1 and iOS 18.2 by that point//

Samsung’s approach to secure and private AI is more robust than Google’s. “We recognize the importance of privacy which is why we give users full control over what they share and what they keep private,” the company says. “We believe our hybrid approach is the most practical and reliable solution to meet all these needs and puts Samsung ahead of the curve. We are providing users with a balance between the instant responsiveness and extra privacy assurance of on-device AI, and the versatility of cloud-based AI through open collaborations with industry-leading partners in offering a variety of functions they need for daily life.”

Apple iPhone versus Samsung Galaxy suddenly gets more interesting//

But Samsung phones carry Gemini as well. And that means the offerings are not fully under Samsung’s control. And that is the difference the company needs to address as it responds to Apple. This will feature heavily when Gemini 2.0 launches, coming at about the same time as Apple’s most material upgrade to its own iPhone AI with iOS 18.2. An interesting few months ahead, but thus far at least, there’s nothing to suggest an answer to Apple’s PCC is waiting in the wings.

But maybe—just maybe—this won’t be as important as all the hype suggests. At least not yet. CNET has just reported that “a quarter of smartphone owners (25%) don't find AI features helpful, 45% are reluctant to pay a monthly subscription fee for AI capabilities and 34% have privacy concerns. A little over half (52%) of smartphone owners have no interest in purchasing a foldable phone. [And] the biggest motivation for US adult smartphone owners to upgrade their devices is longer battery life (61%), followed by more storage (46%) and better camera features (38%). Just 18% say their main motivator is AI integrations.”

The iPhone versus Galaxy backdrop is made worse for Samsung fans by the long delays to its release of One UI 7—its iteration of Android 15, even in beta form. Following the delay confirmed at Samsung’s recent SDC, fan sites are a mix of frustration at the delays and speculation as to what’s to come.

That excitement escalated this weekend with fake banners and posts suggesting the One UI 7 beta had arrived. “No,” SamMobile responded. “Samsung has not started the One UI 7.0 beta program,” explaining that “Samsung fans on X may have come across a post suggesting that the One UI 7.0 beta program is open for registrations, but is that actually the case? It's not. It seems to be another attempt to gain some views from an X user who we have caught posting fake information on the social media platform about upcoming Samsung devices.”