Google is bringing Gemini to all older Pixel Buds

One of the highlights of Google’s latest earbuds, the Pixel Buds Pro 2, is Gemini integration. You can customize the press-and-hold gesture to trigger Google Gemini quickly. From there, you can ask Gemini to bring up Gemini Live if you are in the mood for a brainstorming session with an AI assistant. With Gemini slowly but steadily replacing Google Assistant on Android phones, Google has confirmed that it will bring its AI-powered assistant to previous Pixel Buds as well. So, you won’t have to upgrade to the Pixel Buds Pro 2 to access Gemini.

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Google revealed in its email (via 9to5Google) that Gemini is coming soon to all previous Pixel Buds earbuds, including the Pixel Buds A-series. It will work on the earbuds if you have set the AI-powered digital assistant as your phone’s default assistant and live in a country where Gemini is available. The company did not provide any timeframe for Gemini’s rollout to previous Pixel Buds, but based on its wording, it should happen sooner rather than later.

The email from Google notes that after switching to Gemini, “some Pixel Buds features may work differently than they did with Google Assistant.”

For example, using Gemini with your Pixel Buds will require you to unlock the paired Android phone first. After this, the AI assistant will give personalized responses even if your phone gets locked. But if you remove or disconnect the earbuds, Gemini won’t give you personalized responses until you unlock your phone again. If you find this change annoying, you can tweak the behavior by enabling the “Only require one unlock” option under the Digital Assistant page in the Pixel Buds app.

“Hey Google” on Pixel Buds is now linked to the paired phone’s settings

In the email, Google also informed Pixel Buds users of changes to how “Hey Google” will work and the Gemini integration. As already live for some and announced by Google on its support forums earlier this month, Pixel Buds owners no longer get a separate “Hey Google” toggle for the earbuds. Instead, it will be linked to the paired phone’s setting. So, if you have “Hey Google” detection disabled on your phone, it won’t work on the Pixel Buds either.