Google Assistant Survives to Automate Another Day
Google Assistant’s future has been uncertain for over a year. Once a key player in Google’s mobile and smart home strategies, the software was crucial to the company’s ecosystem. Five years ago, Google even gave away Home Mini speakers to expand its reach. On Tuesday, however, just before next week’s Made by Google 2024 event, the company confirmed that Assistant will remain, at least within the Home/Nest segment.
The pandemic gave a boost to both Google Assistant and Alexa as people spent more time at home. Recently, though, both companies have seemed to slow their efforts. While it’s an exaggeration to say the smart home is dead, as many have, smart home devices are still prevalent. A quick look around your neighborhood will likely reveal numerous doorbell cameras. However, the ultimate vision of a fully automated home with multiple connected devices hasn’t become a reality for most.
Several factors contribute to this. Smart devices are generally more expensive than their traditional counterparts. Additionally, the market has been fragmented, with companies pushing their own apps and ecosystems, leading to poor user experiences that can deter consumers.
The core assistants in this space have faced challenges. Samsung’s Bixby and Microsoft’s Cortana have been discontinued, and even Apple seems to have dialed back its promotion of Siri. The rise of generative AI platforms like ChatGPT has made older smart assistants seem outdated.
Earlier this year, Google allowed beta users to make its GenAI platform, Gemini, the default assistant on their Pixel devices. Although Gemini, with its quirky habits like suggesting glue on pizza, wasn’t ready to replace Assistant completely, it indicated that Assistant’s days on Android might be limited.
With new Pixel devices on the horizon, Assistant’s future on Android remains uncertain. However, Google has announced that Assistant will continue within the Home ecosystem, supported by Gemini models. Gemini’s role in enhancing Assistant is expected to focus on natural language processing, an area where generative AI excels.
“You won’t have to phrase your question in a specific way — ask it in the way that feels most comfortable to you,” Google states. “For example, ask ‘Is Pluto a planet?’ and then follow up with ‘Could they change their minds again?’ Can’t figure out the name of a song? Just ask Google, ‘What’s that iconic basketball theme song?’ Or Assistant can leverage Gemini’s generative capabilities to add some fun to family discussions, like ‘Help me make the case that Crocs are extremely cool — and mention sport mode.’”
These improvements will be available later this year for Nest Aware subscribers as part of a public preview.
Other potential uses for Gemini include summarizing information, a key feature in Google’s push to integrate generative AI into its search offerings. Whether Google continues to call it Google Assistant or rebrands it as Gemini is a matter of branding. Apple recently enhanced Siri with AI-powered features through its new Apple Assistant models, and Google appears ready to do something similar, at least for the smart home sector.
