Google Assistant has finally taken a big hit where it hurts the most. The search giant announced Gemini for Home at its Made by Google event in New York City alongside the Pixel 10 series, Pixel Buds 2a, and Pixel Watch 4.
The all-new voice assistant is coming to Google Home, powering the company"s smart speakers and showing the exit door to Google Assistant. The older sibling has been around for almost a decade now. It was futuristic when it launched back in 2016 and introduced millions of people to the "convenience of managing simple tasks and getting quick answers, hands-free."
Google has been developing and promoting Gemini on the web and through mobile apps for Android and iOS. Gemini for Home packs some capabilities specifically designed for smart speakers that usually have a fixed location in a home.
According to Anish Kattukaran, chief product officer of Google Home & Nest, the new assistant "uses the advanced reasoning, inference and search capabilities" of Google"s most capable AI models. However, there is still some familiarity left, as you can still say "Hey Google" to command the assistant just like before.
Gemini for Home is better at understanding natural language queries when you want to play a specific song or issue multiple commands to control your smart home devices. Its improved natural language support will also help when creating calendar events, lists, and timers. On top of that, Gemini can understand long queries and provide contextually aware answers around specific needs.
Gemini for Home will also get support for Gemini Live, a feature that lets you have back-and-forth conversations with the chatbot as if you"re talking to a human. You can interrupt the chatbot while it"s responding and add more information if you like.
According to Google, Gemini Live can help you with complex kitchen challenges, explore topics in-depth, get personalized troubleshooting, or have a creative collaborator. For instance, you can ask it to suggest meal recipes based on the ingredients you have, come up with a detailed nutrition plan, get help fixing the dishwasher, or create a bedtime story for kids.
Gemini for Home will be available for early access later in October when Google will share more details about the new assistant. The search giant said that it will be available in free and paid versions and will replace Google Assistant in the long run, slowly making its way to existing speakers and displays.