Google could soon roll out a new update for its Gemini AI assistant, which will let you make calls on locked devices. An APK teardown of the Google app has revealed that you will be able to make calls and send messages even when your smartphone is locked. Notably, only Google Assistant supports this feature at the moment. But it is going to change very soon.
Gemini will soon support calling and texting on locked devices
The Gemini assistant’s ability to make calls on locked devices was discovered in the Google app’s version “version 15.42.30.28.arm64 beta”. When you are using the Gemini assistant on your device, you just need to say “Hey Google” and call “recipient name” and Gemini will call that person. You don’t need to unlock your Android smartphone at all.
Source: Android Authority
There will be a new toggle to turn on/off this functionality in the Google app. It’s worth mentioning that Google notes “Gemini will still ask you to unlock when a response contains personal content, such as your Gmail messages, from apps you use”. Gemini was already able to answer queries or requests when the phone was locked. However, Gemini is not able to make calls when the devices are locked.
New UI changes are also coming soon to Gemini
Furthermore, the source has also noticed that there could be some user interface changes for Gemini. One of these changes will make the floating Gemini overlay more minimalistic. Once you click on it, the assistant’s floating overlay is bigger so you can see what you are typing.
In addition, it looks like Google will separate all of your Gemini extensions into various categories. There will be different categories like Communication, Device Control, Travel, Media, and Productivity. Also, the number of example commands will reduce from three to one.
Source: Android Authority
It’s worth mentioning that Google currently seems to be testing all the aforementioned changes with a limited number of people. So, there’s a possibility that this feature could take a while to reach the masses in the Google app’s stable version.
