Google’s artificial intelligence assistant Gemini will soon be able to say “hi” to you directly through your messaging apps and notifications, according to code uncovered by Android Authority. Upcoming extensions for Gemini will continue to expand the options for connecting the Gemini AI to existing services, beyond the initial options of Google Flights, Hotels, Maps, Workspace, YouTube, and YouTube Music.
Extensions are a way for Gemini to access your real-time personal data and improve its response to requests. The code references that list, adding not only the first-party SMS tool Google Messages, but also the third-party WhatsApp. Clearly, Google has no intention of keeping Gemini to itself.
The Google Messages extension will apparently let you read and respond to messages using voice commands with Gemini. That’s not all that different from what Google Assistant could do, though presumably with the same flexibility in language and phrasing as Gemini. The WhatsApp extension will include the same features, but will be bolstered by the option to make calls through the app by asking Gemini.
The last new extension that has been dug up in the code is for Android notifications. It looks like it could make a lot more notifications than the list you see on the screen. Gemini could potentially organize the notifications based on what it has learned is important to you and even summarize what you missed if there are a lot of notifications or if the notifications are related in some way. It would make Gemini a significantly more proactive assistant than Google Assistant,
Gemini Jumpstart
As Google continues to up the stakes for what Gemini can do, it’s worth noting how much pressure the company is under from what appears to be a tsunami of upgrades for its biggest rivals. Apple is expected to introduce new Apple Intelligence features for Siri debuting with the iPhone 16 series this year, and Amazon’s plans for an AI update for Alexa have already largely been scuppered .
Google wants people to rely on Gemini as more than just a toy or a reinvention of Google Assistant; they want it to be a part of your life in every way possible. The inclusion of WhatsApp and its massive global user base makes perfect sense in that equation. But if Gemini is truly going to become the star of the AI assistants, Google will likely face a battle on two fronts. There’s the mobile and voice AI competition against the likes of Apple and Amazon, and the more online-focused battle to capture the same users that OpenAI, Microsoft, and independent AI services are chasing.