Google, OpenAI and Apple push AI deeper into daily apps

Google and OpenAI led a wave of product updates aimed at making AI more embedded in everyday work and media. Google Vids added personal avatars based on a selfie and short recording, while NotebookLM became Gemini Notebook and AI Mode gained links to services including Instacart, Canva, and YouTube Music. Google also redesigned Images as a personalized discovery feed with AI image generation in Search.

OpenAI’s consumer hardware strategy reportedly took shape around a screenless AI companion for the home, described as a mobile smart speaker with a persistent personality. The company also introduced a $230 Codex Micro keyboard for managing AI agents and ChatGPT Work as a broader command center for long-running tasks across coding, research, finance, engineering, and data analysis.

Consumer platforms pushed AI into creation, discovery, and commerce. Roblox introduced Build for turning text prompts into mobile games, Spotify added conversational discovery for Premium users, and DoorDash opened a limited CLI beta for developers and agents to search stores and complete purchases. Apple secured approval to bring Apple Intelligence into China with Alibaba and Baidu, and released an iOS 27 public beta with a rebuilt Siri.

Policy and trust issues intensified alongside the product launches. Meta removed an Instagram feature that could reuse public images after user backlash, while a reported Suno hack allegedly exposed scraping systems tied to YouTube Music, Deezer, Genius, stock libraries, and podcast feeds. New York halted permits for major new data centers using at least 50 megawatts, and the European Union ordered Google to give rival AI assistants comparable access to Android and some Search data.