Every time Google criticized Apple during its Pixel 9 launch event

In between unveiling new Pixel phones and AI features at its event today, Google launched a few attacks on Apple. Some were subtle — others anything but.

While it’s not unusual for companies like Google to make comparisons with the competition at major events like this, Google seemed to sprinkle references to Apple throughout its presentation. Perhaps that’s because Google has become particularly competitive in the AI ​​space, which Apple has only just begun to dive into.

Here are all the comparison moments we captured during the event.

Gemini goes “far beyond English speakers”

At the launch of Gemini, Sameer Samat, president of the Android ecosystem at Google, boasted that Gemini is available in 45 languages ​​and more than 200 countries and territories, and emphasized the expansion to older and non-flagship Android devices.

To top it all off, Samat mentioned that “Gemini is currently available worldwide, well beyond English-speaking users and a single market.” This last clarification seems to be a direct attack on Apple Intelligence, which has not yet rolled out widely and will only be available to English-speaking users in the US when it launches this fall.

Google does not share your data with third parties

Google also highlighted Gemini’s ability to handle tasks such as using your resume in Drive to write a short bio without outsourcing it to a third party. “Gemini can handle these kinds of complex personal requests within Google’s secure cloud without sending your personal data to a third-party AI provider who may not know or trust you,” Samat said.

That seemed like a clear attack on Apple, which has partnered with OpenAI to integrate ChatGPT into Siri. When Siri can’t answer a question, it asks your permission to ask ChatGPT instead. (Of course, Google’s system still requires you to trust Google, so it doesn’t entirely escape the same criticism.)

Google wanted to make sure you know its demos are live

While Apple is known for carefully planning its live events, Google’s events tend to be a little more relaxed. This was clearly evident when Google’s Dave Citron took the stage to demonstrate some of Gemini’s AI capabilities and boldly announced, “All of the demos we’re doing today are live, by the way.” Google took that risk head on – and things didn’t quite go according to plan.

After taking a photo of a Sabrina Carpenter concert poster, Citron asked Gemini if ​​it could check its calendar to see if it was available when she came to San Francisco this year. Gemini didn’t answer the first two times it tried, but when Citron switched phones, it finally answered.

Pixel 9 Pro and 9 Pro XL come “without compromise”

The only difference between the Pixel 9 Pro XL and the new, smaller Pixel Pro option is the size. “You can choose between the Pixel 9 Pro and Pixel 9 Pro XL without compromise,” said Brian Rakowski, vice president of product management at Google. “They have the same incredible display, the same sleek design, the same premium build, the same processing power and the same Pro Pixel camera.”

There are now some small differences between the iPhone 15 Pro and the larger iPhone 15 Pro Max. The iPhone 15 Pro Max offers up to 5x optical zoom, while the regular 15 Pro is limited to 3x. The larger variant also offers up to 29 hours of video playback instead of 23 hours.

Google Pixel 9 Pro vs iPhone 15 Pro Max

When unveiling the Pixel 9 Pro’s camera, Google compared it directly to that of the iPhone 15 Pro Max. Google’s Kenny Sulaimon said the company has “redesigned” the Pixel 9’s panorama mode, which now supports Night Sight to improve the rendering of images in low light.

To demonstrate these changes, Sulaimon asked the audience to look at a panorama of the Tetons at night, then compared it to a shadowy photo from “another smartphone company” – Apple.