Your Android Phones Aren’t ‘Google’ Anymore, They’re All ‘Gemini’

Gemini’s colonization of Android is nearly complete. Soon, users may need to get used to speaking a whole new phrase to access their phone’s assistant. Strings of code were spotted in the latest Android update support, “Hey Gemini” and “Hey Google,” as if Google thought you’d rather talk to the chatbot than the company that made the phone. Earlier this week, Android code sleuth Shiv, AKA AssemblyDebug, spotted a code string in the beta version of the Google app hinting that “Hey Gemini” could sit alongside “Hey Google” as the Android wake word for the assistant. There’s a missing word in the string, but judging solely by the company’s Android XR announcement in January where, in a video, a user asks “Hey Gemini” before receiving an AI-generated voice response. Android has already let Gemini consume Assistant in its entirety. Saying “Hey Google” already brings up Gemini, and this move would only help shut the door on the old assistant model. These two voice commands could work alongsi ... Read full article.