MOUNTAIN VIEW, California — Google unveiled the next generation of Pixel phones on Tuesday, giving the Android software maker a head start on the next iPhone in the race to bring more artificial intelligence to the devices people carry with them at all times.
The showcase took place near Google’s headquarters in Mountain View, California, and came two months ahead of the time the company typically introduces the next models in its Pixel phone line, which launched eight years ago.
Though Pixel phones still represent a small fraction of global smartphone sales, they’re still closely watched because they serve as a platform for Google to showcase the latest developments in its Android operating system, which powers nearly every phone not made by Apple.
Google left no doubt that the Pixel 9 phones are intended to be a platform for the AI technology it expects to change the way people live and work, just as smartphones in general have done over the past 15 years.
“We’re obsessed with the idea that AI can make people’s lives easier and more productive,” Rick Osterloh, a Google senior vice president overseeing the Pixel phones, said Tuesday.
That’s similar to the theme Apple emphasizes as It’s gearing up to make AI a central part of the iPhone.
That moment is expected to arrive shortly after Labor Day, when Apple traditionally takes the wraps off its next iPhone. The next model, the iPhone 16, is expected to be a big draw because it will come equipped with the custom chip needed to run a suite of AI features. Those features are designed to make Apple’s virtual assistant Siri smarter and perform a wide range of other tasks that the company promises will bring more joy to people’s lives while still protecting their privacy.
But Apple’s plans for AI remain fuzzier than Google’s vision, and Google is also rolling it out more broadly, including to Samsung phones running Android, said Emarketer analyst Grace Harmon. That could increase the pressure on Apple next month when it unveils the next iPhone.
It’s no surprise that the Pixel 9 lineup is also packed with AI technology, a shift that Google started last October when it released the model that year. This generation of phones will be the first to be centered around the Gemini technology that has become the central point of the transition to AI.
Just as Apple wants to do with Siri, Google has designed its Gemini assistant to be more conversational, with a range of 10 different human-like voices. It can handle even more tasks, especially if users are willing to give it access to email and other documents.
Following Apple’s lead, Google is equipping the Pixel 9 series with a dedicated chip that allows many AI-driven services to be handled on the device itself instead of in external data centers, all with the aim of improving personal privacy and security.
During on-stage demonstrations on Tuesday, the Gemini assistant, who spoke in a voice called “Ursa,” was able to come up with helpful ideas for a fun way to use invisible ink when asked to come up with creative ideas.
But the Gemini assistant also stumbled when shown a photo of a poster of singer Sabrina Carpenter, and asked to let the questioner know when she was playing a concert nearby. After failing to answer the first two requests, the Gemini assistant provided the requested information.
The Pixel 9 phones will also feature “Magic Editor,” an AI technology capable of completely transforming photos by quickly and seamlessly adding a person who wasn’t in the original photo, or changing the photo’s landscape or background.
The more advanced Gemini Assistant requires a $20 monthly subscription that will be free for a year for all buyers of the next Pixel 9 phones, which start shipping on August 22 and become more widely available next month. The $240 discount that Google is offering with a free year’s subscription to its Gemini Advanced service makes it more likely that Apple will be able to avoid charging for its suite of AI services, Emarketer’s Harmon said.
The standard Pixel 9 will retail for $800, up $100 from last year, while the Pixel 9 Pro will retail for $1,000 or $1,100 depending on size. The next-generation of a foldable Pixel phone, which Google introduced last year, will retail for $1,800.
The event also signaled that Google plans to continue doing business as usual even as its Internet empire is threatened by a recent decision by a judge and declared its dominant search engine an illegal monopoly.
The landmark ruling will set in motion a new round of legal hearings to determine what measures Google must take to create a more competitive market. The process could result in Google being banned from certain deals or, in a more drastic scenario, being ordered to divest its Android software business or give up other key pillars that bolster the nearly $2 trillion market value of its parent company, Alphabet Inc.
In addition to its latest phones, Google is also targeting several other popular Apple products with the Pixel Watch and wireless earbuds.