TL;DR Code from the latest Google app beta sheds light on Gemini’s upcoming agentic features on Android.
Gemini could help you place orders online or hail rides without you needing to actively touch the phone.
While these may be the initial applications, we could see more, as previewed by Google in its Project Astra demo last year.
Google could refer to the functionality as “screen automation.”
AI agents are the hottest trend in tech, and the increasing momentum leaves no room for doubting that your mobile devices will soon be controlled by them. Back at I/O 2025, Google demonstrated how it plans to put Gemini in charge of controlling your phone for you. This was dubbed Project Astra and showed Gemini’s capabilities at not just viewing the text and media on your phone, but also scrolling and tapping when needed, basically displaying a spectrum of agentic force in action to help you with simple tasks. While Project Astra is still under development, we’re seeing evidence detailing some of its aspects.
Recently, we’ve discovered more cues that elaborate on how Gemini would be able to control our Android devices for us. In the Google app, version 17.4.66 beta, on Android, we’ve encountered new strings related to the functionality, starting with what it’s likely to be called.
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In addition to revealing the feature’s codename “bonobo,” these strings also indicate it could be called “screen automation” on Android devices.
Further, as per the description, screen automation can be deployed for placing orders online or booking rides (on apps such as Uber or Lyft). The embedded link currently directs to a generic Gemini support page, suggesting it’s a mere placeholder.
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