The beginning of the end of Google Assistant: meet Gemini for Home and a new smart speaker

During the Made by Google 2025 event, in addition to the presentation smartphones and smartwatch company told in detail about Gemini for Home and briefly showed off the brand’s new smart speaker.

Gemini for Home

Google is positioning Gemini for Home as a completely new voice assistant for the next generation of home assistance. It’s built on the same AI models as Gemini on the smartphone, but with special capabilities for the home. It can open and play media, provide advanced smart home management, organize household and family tasks, and answer any questions.

Compared to Google AssistantGemini for Home is called “more powerful and easier to use” thanks to “the advanced inference, interpretation, and search capabilities available in our most powerful models.” The “Hey Google” activation phrase remains the same, but Google emphasizes that “hard commands” are giving way to “more nuanced and complex queries.”

For example, one query for a smart home can contain several actions: “Dim the lights and set the temperature to 22 degrees.” Even more interestingly, Gemini is able to “logically process more complex instructions,” such as “turn off the lights everywhere except my bedroom.”

There is improved natural language support for creating calendars, lists, and timers, allowing you to give commands like:

• “Add the ingredients to make authentic Italian lasagna to my shopping list”
• “Set the timer for perfectly blanched broccoli.”.

Gemini for Home can also perform complex media queries:

• “Play the song that won the song of the year award in 1990”
• “Play a song from this year’s summer blockbuster about racing.”.

The conversational search function stands out, where you can get more detailed answers:

• “How do I keep raccoons out of my backyard at night?”
• “Considering the weather, crowds, and hotel prices, when is the best time to visit the Greek Islands?”

Gemini Live

Key new feature — Gemini Live now works on smart speakers and displays. All you have to do is say “Hey Google, let’s chat” to start a natural dialog without constantly repeating the key phrase. The assistant supports multi-step conversations, recognizes clarifications, and allows you to change the direction of your response on the fly.

Examples of use:

• In the kitchen: “I have spinach, eggs, cream cheese, and smoked salmon in the fridge. Help me make a delicious meal.” Gemini offers Florentine eggs, frittatas, or pasta with a recipe and step-by-step tips.
• For health: “Help me create a meal plan for the week before my first marathon.”.
• For everyday life: “My dishwasher won’t drain the water. Explain the simple steps to check it.”.
• For creativity: “Create a bedtime story for my 6-year-old daughter.” You can set the parameters of the plot: the main character is a scientist and a princess who loves corn, and offer several options for a furry companion.

Gemini for Home will gradually replace Google Assistant with Nest Hub, Nest Audio, and Nest Mini. Early access will begin in October, with both free and paid versions of the service available.

A new smart speaker has been unveiled in a promotional video featuring basketball player Yannis Adetokumbo and race car driver Lando Norris. It has the shape of a flattened sphere, similar to the Nest Wifi, and glows with the signature Gemini ring in shades of blue, purple, and white. No details yet — no details.

Source: 9to5google, androidpolice