Generative AI is poised to transform the smart home, making it more intuitive and user-friendly. While Amazon has already unveiled its plans for an enhanced Alexa, Google is now stepping up with promises of a smarter, more capable Google Assistant.
New Gemini-Powered Features
Ahead of its fall hardware event, Google announced three new Gemini intelligence-powered features coming to the Google Home platform later this year. These include:
- Camera Intelligence: Descriptive captions for video footage from Nest cameras.
- Natural Language Input: Simplified creation of Google Home routines.
- Smarter Google Assistant: An upgraded Assistant for Nest smart speakers and displays with an all-new voice.
Subscription and Availability
Most of these features, except for the new voice, will be available through Google’s Nest Aware subscription, starting at $8 per month ($80 per year). Initially, these features will launch in Google’s Public Preview beta programme for a limited number of Nest Aware subscribers, with a broader rollout planned for next year.
A New Era for Google Home
Anish Kattukaran, Google Home’s head of product, emphasised that these updates mark the beginning of a new era for the smart home platform.
“This sets the path for the next era of Google Home,” he told The Verge in an interview.
Addressing User Frustrations
Long-suffering Google Home users, who have dealt with outdated smart displays and a challenging transition from the Nest app to the Google Home app, will welcome these improvements. Combined with the recent launch of the Google TV Streamer 4K and a new Nest Learning Thermostat, the future looks promising for Google’s smart home ecosystem.
Gemini Intelligence Behind the Scenes
Google is integrating Gemini intelligence into Nest devices to enhance their functionality. Rather than replacing the Google Assistant, Gemini will work behind the scenes, optimising smart home elements.
“Gemini is a family of models, and we’re optimising it for elements of Google Home,” Kattukaran explained.
Smarter Security Camera Alerts
With Gemini intelligence, Nest cameras can better understand and describe what they see and hear. Instead of generic alerts, users will receive detailed descriptions, such as: “A young person in casual clothing, standing next to a parked black SUV, carrying grocery bags. The car is partially in the garage and the area appears peaceful.”
This contextual information can lead to smarter home automation, like turning on sprinklers if the camera detects a dog digging in the garden.
Enhanced Search Functionality
Users will also be able to use text to search through footage in the Google Home activity tab. For example, if a cat sneaks out after dark, you could ask the system to show the last sighting of the cat, avoiding the need to sift through numerous videos.
Simplified Home Automation
A new “Help me create” feature in the Google Home app allows users to describe their desired actions, such as “lock the doors and turn off the lights at bedtime,” and the system will create a routine automatically. This feature works through text or speech input on the Home app, offering access to all current capabilities and connected devices, including Matter devices.
Improved Google Assistant
In addition to easier automation and camera intelligence, Google is enhancing the core experiences of Google Assistant on all current Nest smart speakers and displays. The Assistant is getting new voices with different styles, tones, and accents, sounding more natural and capable of handling pauses, ums, and ahs, and answering follow-up questions.
Also Read: The Rise of Artificial Intelligence: Transforming Industries and Lives
Maintaining Conversation Context
The new Google Assistant will maintain the context of conversations, learning and understanding your home better over time. The Gemini-powered capabilities will run in the cloud, respecting Google’s privacy principles.
“It is specific to your home and your data models. We’re being very intentional about going slow,” Kattukaran said, emphasising the need for precision in the home environment.
A Vision of the Future
These updates push the digital voice assistant closer to the vision of a genuinely helpful digital companion.
“When we started out with that first-gen assistant, the promise was The Jetsons; the vision was an ultra-helpful assistant that could proactively help you figure things out,” Kattukaran noted. With advancements in language models and AI, this vision is becoming more attainable.
The Competitive Landscape
As Amazon, Google, and Apple race towards creating intelligent, context-aware home assistants, the future of smart home technology is poised to become even more fascinating and user-friendly.
