The standard Google Assistant in the new Google Pixel 9 smartphones has been replaced by the Gemini AI chatbot

The new Google Pixel 9 line differs from the company’s other Android smartphones in one big detail: these devices use the new Gemini AI chatbot as the standard digital assistant, rather than the usual Google Assistant.

Image source: Google

«In the mobile segment, Gemini is an evolution of Google Assistant. Users can still use the classic Google Assistant, but Gemini is the new Assistant,” Sissie Hsiao, vice president and general manager of Gemini Experiences at Google, told Engadget.

According to Xiao, Gemini is capable of doing everything the classic Google Assistant can do and more. He can turn off the lights in a home equipped with smart devices, turn on music, or answer more complex questions, for example, about the weather and its differences between one city or another.

«It’s even more effective at things people are used to doing with Assistant. This is truly a significant evolution in generative AI. It can create images and text, but also perform simple tasks more efficiently and more naturally,” Xiao said.

It should be clear that Gemini can be used as a digital assistant on most modern Android smartphones, be it Pixel models or any other models from other manufacturers, but as a possible option and not as a standard application. To do this, you need to launch Google Assistant, and then agree to replace it with Gemini.

Previously, Google refrained from answering the question of whether the new Gemini will replace the old Google Assistant in the future. “The bottom line is that Gemini is an optional feature on a smartphone. I think Gemini will evolve and become more advanced over time. We have nothing to announce today, but consumers have a choice. Now they can choose a new assistant based on artificial intelligence. They can try it out and we see people doing it. We’re getting a lot of good feedback,” Sameer Samat, president of the Android ecosystem at Google, told Wired in May.