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Apple AI executive Ke Yang departs for Meta amid intensifying talent war

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Apple has lost another key artificial intelligence executive to Meta, as competition for top AI talent across Silicon Valley continues to escalate. Ke Yang, who was recently appointed to lead Apple’s new Answers, Knowledge and Information (AKI) division — a team central to the overhaul of Siri and Apple’s web-based AI search project — is reportedly leaving to join Meta Platforms, according to Bloomberg News.

Yang’s departure comes just weeks after her promotion, which positioned her at the forefront of Apple’s push to develop a ChatGPT-like AI-driven search tool. The project was expected to debut in March as part of Apple’s broader effort to integrate generative AI into its ecosystem.

Neither Apple, Meta, nor Yang have commented publicly on the move. Yang joined Apple in 2019, according to her LinkedIn profile.

Meta, led by Mark Zuckerberg, has been aggressively recruiting AI experts from competitors including Apple, Google, OpenAI, and Anthropic, as major tech firms pour billions into advancing generative AI and large language models. Bloomberg previously reported that other Apple executives, including Ruoming Pang and Robby Walker, have also recently left the company amid the growing AI talent war.

The move underscores the fierce competition among tech giants seeking to gain an edge in the race toward AI-powered search and digital assistants — a space increasingly defined by breakthroughs in conversational models and multimodal intelligence.

Google brings Gemini AI to Chrome after antitrust ruling spares breakup

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Google announced it is rolling out its Gemini AI models directly into the Chrome browser for U.S. desktop users starting Thursday, marking one of the company’s most ambitious integrations of AI into its core products. The move comes just weeks after a federal judge spared Google from a forced breakup in a high-profile antitrust case but ordered it to share data with competitors to level the playing field in online search.

The Gemini add-on will first be available on Mac and Windows desktops in English, with plans to expand soon to Chrome’s iOS app. Business rollouts will follow in the coming weeks through Google Workspace, and mobile integrations are also on the way.

Gemini in Chrome will be tied more deeply into other Google services such as Calendar, YouTube, and Maps, enabling multi-step “agentic” capabilities in the coming months. These include finding previously visited webpages, summarizing content across multiple sites, and carrying out automated tasks on a user’s behalf.

The move positions Google against rivals developing “agentic browsers,” such as Perplexity, which recently offered $34.5 billion in cash for Chrome and launched its own AI browser, Comet.

Judge Amit Mehta’s September ruling allowed Google to keep control of Chrome and Android but barred exclusive contracts with device makers and browser developers. The decision still permits Google to pay partners like Apple to feature its search engine, reinforcing its dominance in search. Meanwhile, reports suggest Apple has discussed adopting Gemini AI to power a revamped Siri, further tightening ties between the two companies.

Apple’s iPhone Event May Lack Spark, but Rumored Slim ‘iPhone Air’ Could Drive Upgrades

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Apple is set to unveil its latest iPhone lineup on Tuesday, but analysts warn the launch could feel underwhelming compared with rivals’ rapid AI integration. The highlight may be the rumored “iPhone Air”, a slimmer model designed to echo the sleekness of Apple’s MacBook Air.

The thinner device would require Apple to solve battery and camera design challenges while fitting into a price band between the base iPhone 17 and Pro models. Analysts say this new form factor could entice iPhone 14–16 users to upgrade, offering Apple its first meaningful design shift in years.

Some see the “Air” as a stepping stone toward foldable iPhones and a more advanced Siri, though foldables are not expected until next year. Competitors like Samsung and Google already have folding models, but they remain a niche category at less than 2% of global sales. Apple faces added pressure in China, where foldables are popular and its market share has slipped.

Pricing remains a sensitive issue amid Trump’s tariff policies. Apple may quietly push margins higher through storage-based price increases, avoiding direct price hikes that could trigger political backlash, analysts say.

On the AI front, Apple has lagged rivals. Plans to revamp Siri were delayed by engineering hurdles, forcing the company to lean on OpenAI’s ChatGPT integration. Apple is also in early talks to use Google’s Gemini AI to strengthen Siri. Analysts expect the company to tout the AI processing power of its next-gen Apple Silicon chips, paving the way for an “agentic Siri” that can handle tasks in the background without draining device batteries.

While Apple’s customer base remains loyal, experts warn the company now has months, not years, to prove it can match competitors in AI and form-factor innovation. “By this time next year, if Siri still disappoints and the foldable isn’t out, Apple’s content base could erode,” said Bob O’Donnell of TECHnalysis Research.