When Google introduced Gemini, its new AI-powered assistant, there was still a lot of work to be done. The classic Google Assistant was far superior in functionality, but that has changed over time. One of the biggest additions to Gemini was Live, the “conversational” experience. Now, Google is rolling out an update that will make Gemini Live “more dynamic and engaging.”
Google updates Gemini Live for a “more dynamic and engaging” experience
As spotted by 9to5Google, some Gemini Live users have started receiving an email notifying them of an updated experience. Google says the rolling out improvements are powered by an unnamed “latest model.” It’s quite likely the company is referring to one of the versions of its Gemini 2.0 AI model series.
According to the Mountain View giant, the improvements will help Gemini Live to “better understand multiple languages, dialects, or accents in a single Live chat.” It can also “help with your translation needs,” the email states.
It seems that the company is integrating the improved multimodal capabilities announced with Gemini 2.0. This allows the AI-powered assistant to get text, audio, and video inputs while producing text and audio outputs. However, the improvements will be first noticed in all tasks related to audio processing. Features like screen sharing and live video streaming will be available “in the coming months.”
Multimodal capabilities arriving “in the coming months“
Google has been working on Gemini Live’s multimodal capabilities for some time. The company teased the functionality last year under the name “Project Astra.” Since then, users have been eagerly awaiting the advanced real-time item recognition capabilities, among other features shown. The email suggests 2025 will be the year Gemini Live takes a step forward. The assistant could offer the most advanced conversational experience on smartphones by far.
The integration of the new features also brings a change to data handling policies. An update was needed considering the company is preparing Live to process audio and video. “Your audio, video, and screenshares are stored in your Gemini Apps Activity (if it’s on),” the email reads. The previous version said, “Live voice and audio data is not saved to Google servers at this time. We’ll be transparent about any changes.”
Lastly, the email doesn’t detail whether the improvements will be available in all languages or just English first. Hopefully, Google will provide more info on this in the coming days.
