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5 Game-Changing Gemini AI Features to Enhance Your Life

Writer's picture: AndroBoyAndroBoy

Google I/O recently wrapped up its main keynote, and it was all about AI. Mentioned 120 times throughout the keynote—or 121, because there had to be one more AI—this year’s event skipped the norms of the past and focused on detailing how AI is being integrated into every single Google product.

Gemini AI Features

Generative AI is now laced into every part of your Google experience with Gemini. From accessibility and human-centered features like AI-powered scam detection to advanced search capabilities, support for new multi-modal AI-powered glasses, and the ability to search via video, this is the most transformative Google I/O keynote in years. Among the impressive announcements, a few stood out as particularly significant for the AI-powered future we're all aiming for. These features represent the promise of AI in a way that levels social differences such as income, visual impairments, location, and more. Here are the Gemini AI features that will truly transform the lives of everyday users.


1. Project Astra

Project Astra

Project Astra Glasses
Google

If there’s one feature you should be left thinking about, it’s Project Astra. We’ve put the best one first: if you’re visually impaired, Project Astra has the potential to change your life. Lets take an Example Someone has a +12 prescription, and Project Astra feels like it’ll herald in a future of multi-modal smart glasses that could improve the lives of the vision impaired.

Sure, Google has made glasses before, and there was no mention of hardware specifically at Google I/O, but the glasses are real, so we’ll probably learn more soon. Either way, we’ll eventually get glasses powered by Project Astra and made by Google or through partnerships with companies like OPPO, Samsung, or Meta. Regardless of where they come from, having your AI-powered assistant see what you see and help you answer questions opens the door to so much more.


2. Ask Photos

Ask Photos with Gemini
Google unveils Ask Photos with Gemini, AI
Google

Google Photos is getting a major AI upgrade, designed to help regular people with queries. Instead of manually searching your gallery or browsing your favorite images, you can ask Gemini which now replaces Google Assistant on your phone simple questions, and it will go off and find the answers. It works by breaking down your prompt into actionable steps behind the scenes, automatically doing the multi-step prompt process you would have had to do otherwise. The demos showed searches like “What’s my car number plate?” and “How has my daughter’s swimming progressed?” but as always, the real groundbreaking use cases will become apparent once everyone starts using it.


3. Spam Detection During Calls

Spam Detection During Calls

One of the new Android features will have the biggest impact: Spam Detection during calls. With Gemini AI built into the foundation of every Android phone it’s not just Pixel users who will get these features it is an always-on AI assistant designed to prompt and help you when it thinks you need it. A demo of the Spam Detection feature showed a simulated spam call. As the caller suggests moving money to a safe account, Gemini AI alerts the user with a big on-screen prompt, effectively making a scammer’s job much harder. I do not doubt that scams will still evolve and find ways to beat the AI, but there’s also no doubt that Gemini will keep learning. Instead of scammers vs. you, it’s now scammers vs. you and an AI that will consistently evolve. I know which side I would bet on.


4. Ask with Video

Ask with Video

Google has recently enhanced its Circle to Search feature by introducing video functionality, elevating user interaction and search efficiency. This advancement empowers users to simply point their phone's camera at an object and orally inquire about it, enabling Gemini, Google's AI assistant, to swiftly get relevant information. A notable demonstration showcased the expedited troubleshooting of a broken tone arm on a record player. By directing the camera towards the malfunctioning component and articulating the issue, Gemini promptly identified the product name, model number, and the problematic part, while also providing comprehensive solutions. This seamless integration of visual input with voice commands promises unparalleled convenience and efficiency in accessing information. Anticipating its application, users can envision scenarios where they effortlessly ascertain the value, optimal selling platforms, and potential long-term collector worth of items. This innovative integration of video-enabled inquiry with AI-driven search capabilities represents a significant jump forward in streamlining information retrieval processes.


5. Google TalkBack's AI-Powered Enhancements

TalkBack, a pivotal accessibility feature on Android devices, has undergone a substantial AI-driven enhancement, significantly benefiting individuals with severe visual impairments. Recognizing the imperative of equitable access to information and services, Google has used artificial intelligence to amplify user experiences comprehensively. This upgrade aims to minimize the inherent challenges faced by visually impaired users, ensuring they can navigate digital environments with efficacy and independence.


Let Google TalkBack to You

For instance, visualize a scenario where a visually impaired individual is browsing for clothing online. Despite the inability to identify intricate visual details, Google's AI-enabled assistance intervenes, offering detailed descriptions of items that may lack adequate alternative text (ALT tags). Beyond this, the potential applications of AI assistance are vast, spanning diverse realms of daily living. With the formidable capabilities of Gemini AI at its core, this integration holds promise for transformative impacts, empowering individuals with visual impairments to accomplish tasks autonomously and engage more fully in various facets of life. This synergy between advanced AI technologies and accessibility initiatives underscores a pivotal step forward in fostering inclusivity and enhancing quality of life for individuals with visual impairments.


Bonus: Google Workspace

Google announced a ton of new Google Workspace features, all powered by Gemini AI. Whether you’re a sole trader, small business owner, or even someone who values the power of Google Workspace in your daily life, Gemini AI will transform your everyday experience. Google has implemented Gemini in a sidebar that’s effectively its answer to Microsoft’s CoPilot and is integrated into many Workspace apps. It lets you do everything from summarizing emails and answering questions to building incredibly complex automated workflows that will reduce the amount of manual data entry and assistance your business needs.


While it’s not just for businesses, the features are limited to Workspace accounts, Google’s paid version of Gmail. Some of the demos were designed with personal use cases in mind, such as summarizing all the quotes you received for a home improvement project and automatically aggregating your receipts in a single Google Drive folder. Others were solely designed for businesses, like creating an automated routine where Gemini will look for every email containing financial information and automatically add them to a spreadsheet. For all businesses—large and small—Gemini for Google Workspace could be transformative in every business area. Many employees use valuable resources searching for answers to simple problems, and intranet/documentation platforms are worth billions of dollars for a reason. In the demo of future features for Workspace, Google showed how Gemini could learn from its communications across an entire team. Instead of asking multiple people whether something was approved yet, you can create a virtual teammate (powered by Gemini) that goes off, looks at all of its conversations, and can answer that question. It’s all in real-time so that anyone can jump in at any time, and it effectively makes surfacing information effortless.


Building AI Responsibly

Google knew this would be the biggest Google I/O in years, and every announcement had a strong flair for global impact. Google didn’t focus on how AI would work for niche or edge examples; rather, it focused on showcasing the real-world use cases of AI in all of its demos.


The Google I/O keynote left me feeling one thing: hope. It is clearly a transformative time for Google, and we’re seeing what an AI-powered future could look like. Sure, Google has a history of not delivering to its full potential, so there’s no guarantee that it will this time, but these AI features have so much possibility that I truly hope Google delivers on all of its promises. Then, maybe we can all eventually let Google do all the Googling in every facet of life.

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