Apple will lean on Google to help finish its bungled attempts to smarten up its virtual assistant Siri and bring other artificial intelligence features to the iPhone as the trendsetting company plays catch up in technology's latest craze. The deal that allowing Apple to tap into Google's AI technology was disclosed Monday in a joint statement from the Silicon Valley powerhouses. The partnership will draw upon Google's Gemini technology to customize a suite of AI features dubbed "Apple Intelligence" on the iPhone and other products. Apple announced plans to use AI to turn Siri into a more conversational and versatile multitasker in 2024, but that promise remains unfulfilled.

More artificial intelligence is being implanted into Gmail as Google tries to turn the world's most used email service into a personal assistant that can improve writing, summarize far-flung information buried in inboxes and deliver daily to-do lists. The new AI features announced Thursday could herald a pivotal moment for Gmail, a service that transformed email when it was introduced nearly 22 years ago. Gmail's new AI options will only be available in English within the U.S. for starters, but Google is promising to introduce them in other countries and other languages as the year unfolds.

Britain's antitrust watchdog has targeted Google and Apple for their "strategic" roles in mobile ecosystems, opening the door for regulators to impose changes to their business practices to improve competition. The Competition and Markets Authority escalated scrutiny of the two U.S. tech companies on Wednesday by labeling them with "strategic market status." It follows separate investigations that the CMA opened at the start of the year into Google's Android and Apple's iOS using newly acquired digital market regulations designed to protect consumers and businesses from unfair practices by Big Tech companies. Google called the decision "disappointing."

OpenAI has introduced its own web browser, ChatGPT Atlas, putting it in direct competition with Google. The new browser, launched Tuesday on Apple laptops, aims to make ChatGPT a gateway to online searches. This move could increase OpenAI's internet traffic and advertising revenue. CEO Sam Altman describes it as a chance to rethink browser use. Atlas will eventually be available on Windows, iOS, and Android. The browser faces a tough challenge against Google's Chrome, which has about 3 billion users.

OpenAI has announced new parental controls for ChatGPT to make it safer for teens. This move comes after concerns about AI chatbot safety for young users, including tragic cases where teenagers took their lives after using ChatGPT. To get started, parents can send an email or text invite to their teen to link accounts. Teens can also invite parents. The new controls include automatic safeguards for teen accounts, such as reduced graphic content and restrictions on sensitive topics. Parents will have a dashboard to adjust settings and receive notifications if their child might be in distress.