Hey Google Home & Nest Community,
When we first introduced the early access program for the Gemini for Home voice assistant last October, we knew we were rolling out an upgraded experience but embarking on a journey to fundamentally redefine an AI voice assistant. Building a truly helpful AI for the home would require a commitment to listening and iterating.
A Season of Rapid Iteration
Since then we've been rapidly improving and iterating on the product based on your feedback. Our recent updates highlight the momentum we’ve been driving including:
- Improved Speed: We’ve cut smart home latency by up to 40% for common commands like "turn on the lights," making your home feel more responsive.
- Context-Aware Intelligence: We’ve overhauled how Gemini identifies your devices. It is now much better at distinguishing between a "lamp" and a "light," and it uses your home address to provide highly accurate local weather and news.
- Precision Control: Gemini now understands "Expressive Lighting" (ask for "the color of the ocean") and offers granular control for appliances, such as setting specific humidity levels or preheating smart ovens.
- Natural Interactions: We’ve reduced response verbosity for tasks like setting timers and alarms, ensuring interactions are snappier and less intrusive. We’ve also introduced "world-aware" alarms—try asking, "Set an alarm for the start of the <my team name> match."
- A Family Experience: Gemini for Home is now ready for the whole family, with new support for kids on supervised Google Accounts so they can learn and play safely.
- New Innovations like Live Camera Search: Users with Google Home Premium can now search their camera streams in real-time to understand the current state of their home.
Expanding the Global Footprint to 16 New Countries
The appetite for a more sophisticated, AI-driven home experience is global. We are happy to announce that we are rolling out the Gemini for Home voice assistant in early access to 7 new languages and 16 new countries beyond the United States, Canada, and Mexico to bring this momentum to millions more users. Users in the following regions will begin seeing invitations to join the early access program in the Google Home app:
New Supported Countries:
- Europe: Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Ireland, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, United Kingdom.
- Asia-Pacific: Australia, Japan, New Zealand.
New Supported Languages: Danish, Dutch, English, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Norwegian, Spanish, and Swedish.
Help Us Build the Helpful Home
Early access is a journey we take together. To help us refine Gemini as we expand into these new countries and languages, please share your thoughts when a behavior isn't quite right. The most effective way to help is to send feedback using your voice and include:
- The specific query you used.
- The behavior you encountered vs. what you expected.
Your feedback is the engine driving our roadmap. We can’t wait to see how you use Gemini to make your home more helpful and intuitive. The early access roll out begins today and will ramp up to all eligible users that choose to opt-in over the next week. Sign up and keep the feedback coming.
Thanks,
Mark, Product Lead, Gemini for Home voice assistant
