Google has officially announced a major shift in its AI ecosystem: the classic Google Assistant will soon be retired on most mobile devices, making way for its successor, Gemini AI. This transition, confirmed by Google on Friday, marks a new era in Android’s smart assistant technology.
Starting in 2025, Google will accelerate efforts to replace Google Assistant with Gemini across a broader range of devices. This shift will not only impact smartphones but also extend to tablets, cars, and connected accessories like smartwatches and wireless headphones. It’s also likely that iOS users leveraging Google Assistant will see changes in the near future.
Smart home technology, while not a primary focus of Google’s recent AI developments, isn’t being left behind. The company has reiterated its commitment to integrating Gemini into smart speakers, smart displays, and streaming devices, promising a revamped AI-driven experience.
For users who prefer Google Assistant, there is one way to keep it—owning a device that doesn’t meet Gemini’s minimum requirements. Devices running Android 9 or lower, or those with less than 2GB of RAM, may retain Google Assistant for now. However, for most modern devices, the transition is inevitable.
The signs of Google Assistant’s decline have been evident for some time. The Pixel 9 series launched with Gemini AI as the default assistant, signaling a clear direction for the future of Google’s AI ecosystem. Over time, Google has also been steadily integrating Assistant-like capabilities into Gemini, making the transition smoother for users.
While Google hasn’t provided an exact timeline for the full switch, it’s expected that any device launching with Android 16 will rely on Gemini instead of the traditional Google Assistant. This marks the beginning of a new AI-driven experience for Android users, leaving behind an assistant that has been a part of Google’s ecosystem for years.
