Gemini ascendant
Google plans to kill Assistant on your phone on September 4
Assistant will disappear, leaving only Gemini for voice control in the coming weeks.
Credit:
Aurich Lawson
Credit:
Aurich Lawson
Google Assistant’s days have been numbered for a while, but the company has now settled on a date to retire its pre-AI assistant robot. In an email being sent out to users, Google confirms that Assistant on Android devices will be shut down starting on September 4, forcing everyone over to Gemini. Google told us it was coming, but that doesn’t make it hurt any less.
The initial plan was to retire Assistant in late 2025, but the service got a brief reprieve as Google shored up some aspects of Gemini. Now that Gemini is ready to take over, Google will begin ending support for the old system on September 4, but the email notes that it may take several weeks for the process to complete. So those stubbornly clinging to Assistant may still be able to use it a bit longer before the option disappears. For those who made the switch already, nothing will change.
By ending Assistant on mobile devices, Google is also killing it on myriad other gadgets that connect to your phone for smart features. So smartwatches, headphones, and cars with Android Auto are also being forcibly moved to Gemini. Most of Google’s smart home devices have already transitioned to Gemini.
Assistant won’t be totally dead after this process is complete. The email notification doesn’t mention Android-powered TVs and set-top boxes, nor are vehicles with Google built-in on the list. These platforms will transition to Gemini-only in the future, but Google doesn’t have a date for that yet.
Ryan Whitwam
Credit:
Ryan Whitwam
You may also get a reprieve if you have an older device that doesn’t meet Gemini’s minimum specifications or if you live in a region where Gemini is not supported. However, virtually everyone will lose access to Assistant on phones within the next month or two. After that, you’ll have to talk to the gen AI-based Assistant or shut off voice control entirely. You can see the full email in this Reddit thread.
There may be an adjustment period for Assistant holdouts. Where once you could say “Hey Google” and get the limited but predictable Assistant, you’ll now have the powerful yet confounding Gemini chatbot. Gemini calls tools to complete tasks that used to be baked into Assistant. While the old system couldn’t carry on a conversation, you knew what you were getting. Gemini sometimes goes off on a tangent or forgets that it does, in fact, have access to a particular tool. That can make it frustrating to use for what’s supposed to be a quick voice interaction, but this is the future.
