Google is adding even more AI features to its suite of products, including the new Pixel 9 mobile phone, the company said during the annual Made by Google conference on Tuesday.
Attendees at the event in Mountain View, Calif., were shown several updates to Android OS, the new Pixel 9 phones, Pixel 9 Pro Fold, Pixel Watch 3, and Pixel Buds Pro 2. But artificial intelligence and Google’s Gemini held center stage throughout the event.
“A few months ago, at Google I/O, we shared a broad range of breakthroughs to make AI more helpful for everyone—we’re obsessed with the idea that AI can make life easier and more productive for people,” Google Senior Vice President of Platforms & Devices Rick Osterloh said on stage. “It can help us learn, it can help us express ourselves, and it can help us be more creative.
“Now, the most important place to get this right, is right in the devices we carry with us every day,” he added.
The announcements at Made by Google come during a surge in AI development from the technology and search behemoth. In June, Google released the latest version of its flagship AI model, Gemini 1.5 Pro. That launch was followed up in July with the launch of Google Vids, which allows users to easily generate images, videos, and voiceovers.
Gemini Live
Google is replacing its Google Assistant, released in 2016, with Gemini Live, an AI-powered chatbot that allows for free-flowing, conversational interactions, including hands-free use and multiple voice options. With Gemini Live, Google said, users can interrupt the conversation and change topics during the conversation with the AI model.
Google said that Gemini Live can naturally understand human words and intent, complete complex tasks, and suggest creative ideas.
“We believe a truly helpful, personal AI assistant must do more,” Google Vice President of User Experience Jenny Blackburn said. “It needs to be able to communicate with you conversationally because sometimes conversation is the best way to work through something complex, like exploring a concept by talking it through or tossing ideas back and forth to help you brainstorm, or even acting as your anytime practice partner to help you prepare for an important conversation or an interview.”
Gemini Live, rolled out today for Android users, also features ten new voices for the AI assistant, which Google said will make speaking with Gemini feel more natural. An iOS version of Gemini Live will launch in the coming weeks, the company said.
While Google showcased numerous advances in its “Gemini Era” of consumer-facing artificial intelligence, it did not address how users can turn off the AI or opt out of having their data used to train Gemini.
Pixel 9
The Google Pixel 9 series is getting an AI-powered overhaul, with Gemini also finding its way into the Pixel’s camera, screen, and applications like Pixel Screenshots, Pixel Studio, and Magic Editor.
“We want to make sure our most powerful phones have access to the latest and greatest Gemini models and app features,” Google Vice President of Product Management Brian Rakowski said. “So all three pro phones come with one year of Gemini advanced and two terabytes of cloud storage.”
Features for the Google Pixel 9 include Gemini AI, and photo tools like Add Me that allow users to insert themselves into pictures they were not a part of.
Other features include Super Res Zoom Video, Pixel Studio for creativity, Google Keep list creation, screenshot recall, Call Notes for conversation summaries, and improved performance with the Google and Samsung-designed Tensor G4 chip.
Prices for Pixel 9s start at $799, the Pixel 9 Pro for $999, and the foldable Pixel 9 Pro Fold for $1799.
Pixel Watch 3
AI is also being added to the new Google Pixel Watch 3 with features like “hold a minute,” which answers phone calls and lets users keep them on hold until they reach a better place to talk. Pixel Watch 3 also comes with AI-powered fitness and health features like personalized and customizable workout plans, and for Fitbit users, Fitbit Premium comes with Google AI.
Another feature introduced in the Google Pixel Watch 3 is “Loss of Pulse Detection,” which can automatically place a call if the wearer’s heart stops beating.
“Now, along with helping with your workouts and with your recovery, there’s another special role that a watch can play,” Google Senior Director of Product Management Sandeep Waraich said. “With the power of real-time sensing, it can be a powerful health and safety guardian and prompt life-saving action when every second counts, like a car crash or a bad fall.”
Pixel Buds Pro 2
Google also introduced the AI-upgraded Pixel Buds Pro 2, which features advanced noise cancellation (ANC) technology—and with Gemini, users can carry on their conversations via their headphones.
The Pixel Buds Pro 2 starts at $229 and also includes spatial audio with head tracking that allows the sound to move with the user no matter where they face.
“Pixel Buds Pro 2 are the perfect companion to your Pixel phone with premium sound quality, powerful ANC, amazing battery life, incredible comfort and fit, and the helpfulness of Gemini everywhere you go,” Waraich said.
Source: Decrypt’s Emerge
