Highlights.
- Google Pixel 10 series could be launching side by side with Pixel Sense, known previously as Pixie, a new contextual AI assistant.
- The assistant is said to be completely in-device, and it will provide a secure yet personalized experience to any user.
- Pixel Sense will adapt to the user over time, learning from various habits so that it will provide personalized assistance over a longer lifespan.
Expected to debut sometime soon is Google’s Pixel 10, and now, ahead of its launch, we have news that the smartphone may appear with a brand new AI assistant. According to a report by Android Authority, the Pixel Sense, previously known as Pixie, is Google’s new contextual AI assistant, which is built to enhance user experience by augmenting the on-device processing for better privacy and speed. Early efforts such as the scrapped “At A Glance” ultimately fell short, but despite these setbacks, rumors came to be that Google was working on this very AI.
Google’s Pixie.
Reports from 2023 stated that Google was developing “Pixie”, a new unique assistant set to debut with the Pixel series. It was suggested that Pixie would be an AI assistant exclusive to Pixel devices that would use “data from Google products” on the smartphone to create “a far more personalized version of the Google Assistant.”
It would have been a major upgrade of Google’s AI capabilities, improving features such as Google Assistant, Now Playing, Live Translate, and even the Circle-to-Search functionalities. Considering that it would process data directly on the device, it would offer a much faster response time while keeping the user’s data private.
What is Google Pixel Sense?
Citing an insider source from Google, Android Authority claims that the company is making preparations to launch a new AI-powered assistant called Pixel Sense. This contextual AI assistant is designed to be integrated with Google’s various applications on Pixel smartphones, providing users with a much more personalized experience. Although it is expected to be released with the Google Pixel 10 series, the nature of its exclusivity is still unknown.
The report went on to state that the Pixel Sense will process data from multiple Google applications, including Google Calendar, Chrome, Files, Gmail, Google Docs, Keep, Maps, Messages, Photos, Wallet, Phone, Recorder, YouTube, and YouTube Music. It will also use information from a yet unreleased app, currently named Aurelius, though its function remains a mystery.
A key feature of the assistant is its ability to function entirely on-device, ensuring that the data of the user remains private at all times. It analyzes data that is available locally and provides context-aware suggestions related to places, products, and names. This suggests that Google could rely on Gemini Nano, an on-device version of its Gemini AI model. Over time, the assistant will learn the user’s habits and help them to perform tasks and routines quickly. By adapting to the user’s interests, the assistant will keep improving itself.
The AI assistant will also be able to process media files, such as text, images, AI-generated content, and associated metadata. The processing of screenshots could be similar to Pixel Screenshots.
Information on features aside, it is not exactly known how the AI assistant will function, although Google has the following to say.
- “Personal predictive suggestions: Takes notes to suggest personal data like places, products, and names, right when you need them.”
- “Complete tasks faster: Learns how you use your phone to help you complete tasks and routines faster.”
- “Adapting to your interests: Learns which topics are important to you and keeps evolving with you.”
The previous “At A Glance” effort by Google had ultimately fallen short of their estimated standards, but the features of Pixel Sense paint a promising picture. With the release of the Pixel 10 series being some time in the future, we will have to wait to witness the true capabilities of this AI assistant.
