Google unveils new android AI features ahead of Apple’s Siri revamp

[NEW YORK] Alphabet’s Google announced a slew of upcoming features for its Android 17 operating system, showcasing its progress in artificial intelligence.

This comes weeks before Apple is set to announce major upgrades to its own iOS platform and AI offerings.

The Android updates, announced on Tuesday (May 12) in addition to a new “Googlebook” laptop platform, include advanced capabilities for the company’s Gemini AI assistant, redesigned emojis and improvements that should appease creators who frequently post videos to Meta Platforms’ Instagram. 

Google said the new features will roll out in waves. Several of them will debut on Samsung Electronics’ next foldable phones and Google’s Pixel 11 series, both coming this summer. 

“There is a great concern about AI for AI’s sake, and we want to be very purposeful,” said Sameer Samat, who oversees the Android ecosystem.

The company is detailing its plans just weeks before Apple’s Worldwide Developers Conference, where the iPhone maker is expected to unveil an overhauled, more conversational Siri assistant powered by Gemini AI models.

But Google, which is holding its own developer event next week, wants to sell consumers on the idea that Android provides an AI experience several years ahead of whatever Apple ultimately introduces. 

“Some companies are still working on their first iteration of what that chatbot or voice assistant should really be,” said Samat. “I’m sure that will be great when they get to it.”

But many shoppers remain suspicious of AI. “I think the consumer is trying to figure out how they should feel about AI, and I want to make sure that everything we do in our experiences in Android is done with a purpose,” he added.

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“This is a fundamental shift in how we interact with technology. And the conclusion is that every aspect of the operating system needs to change.”

Gemini Intelligence

Google is taking at least one cue from Apple: It is rebranding the new suite of consumer-facing Gemini features on premium smartphones as Gemini Intelligence, similar to Apple Intelligence.

One major new Android capability is Rambler, a voice dictation feature that ignores filler words and aims to home in on what is important.

The audio is only used for transcription purposes and is not saved or stored anywhere. Rambler can also switch between different languages in a single message.

Android 17 will also expand the ways in which Gemini can browse the web or control apps on a user’s behalf.

After testing automated multistep tasks on Samsung and Pixel phones earlier this year with a small number of rideshare and food delivery apps, Google will let people use this functionality in a much broader range of scenarios.

For example, if you have a grocery list in a notes app, Gemini can build a shopping cart with those items for a delivery order. Users can intervene and stop an automation or take over at any time.

Another feature, Create A Widget, lets users set up home screen widgets by telling Gemini what they want through natural language.

“For years, we’ve been micromanaging our computers, breaking down our goals into endless clicks or taps,” Samat said. “And I think the new interface with AI can change that. You can articulate the goal and the computer should figure out the execution.”

A key fix for creators

One longstanding user complaint about Android has been that video recordings might look fantastic when viewed on the phone that captured them, but once they are shared to Instagram, they can lose detail and the overall quality falls short of clips taken with an iPhone.

The difference is not always stark, but it is enough for many creators to favor Apple’s hardware.

But during a media briefing ahead of Tuesday’s announcement, Google said it worked closely with Meta to resolve the issue, and claimed that external side-by-side tests confirm that videos captured and uploaded from high-end Android devices now score the same or better than an iPhone.

Android 17 also introduces a new CapCut-inspired feature called Screen Reactions, which records a video of both the user (with the selfie camera) and whatever is on their screen at the same time.

This format has proven popular on social media, but often requires using a green screen and a third-party editing app for the best end result. Now, Google is building it right into Android. 

The new creator-centric features will arrive first on Pixel devices.

Other new features

• Emojis are getting a makeover, with a new batch of more than 4,000 icons that have greater depth and realism. These, too, will make their debut on the Pixel line.
• A new tool, called Pause Point, is meant to help cut down on doomscrolling. It lets the user label specific apps as distracting. When you open that app, Android will make suggestions such as doing a 10-second breathing exercise or switching to an audiobook app. You can also set an app timer limit or spend a few seconds swiping through your photos as a mental reset. More digital well-being features are coming later this year.
• Google is making it easier for Android users to share with iPhone owners over AirDrop. Even on phones that do not have the recent Quick Share workaround, you will now be able to generate a QR code to instantly share files, images and videos with iOS devices via the cloud.
• In the coming weeks, third-party apps including WhatsApp will be able to share cross-platform between Android and iOS over Quick Share.

Samat noted: “All these things help you spend less time and effort (to use) the machine to accomplish what you’re trying to do, which hopefully gives you more back for yourself.

“And that’s really the way in which we want to present this technology to the world, and the kind of value proposition behind it.” BLOOMBERG