Google Now was the better phone assistant, no AI or LLMs needed

The different day I was manually getting into upcoming occasions that have been listed on a web site into Google Calendar. Several years in the past, I may simply activate Google Now on Tap and have most of that data routinely stuffed. 

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Today, neither Google Assistant nor its Lens integration have an equal characteristic. (I ended up split-screening on the Pixel Fold so I didn’t need to preserve switching between Chrome and Calendar.)

Google’s in-progress plan to revitalize Assistant is by infusing it with LLMs (massive language fashions), beginning on cellular, which ought to imply Android. Hopefully that “supercharged Assistant” will be capable to analyze what’s on my display, discover dates/occasions/places, and provide to reserve it in Google Calendar for me.

It’s ridiculous, nonetheless, that we had that performance 6-7 years in the past and didn’t want the bleeding edge in laptop science to get it. Other issues Google Now on Tap may do: 

• “…if a friend emails you about seeing the new movie Tomorrowland, you can invoke Google Now without leaving your app, to quickly see the ratings, watch a trailer, or even buy tickets.”
• “If you’re chatting with a friend about where to get dinner, Google can bring you quick info about the place your friend recommends. You’ll also see other apps on your phone, like OpenTable or Yelp, so you can easily make a reservation, read reviews or check out the menu.”
• “…if you’re listening to Twenty One Pilots on Spotify, you can say “Ok Google, who’s the lead singer” and get your reply immediately.”
• Recognize flight numbers and present standing
• “…tapping and holding on your confirmation email will display tracking info and the status of your package”
• “When reading a news article about Justin Trudeau or Ronda Rousey, tap and hold to get links to related articles so you can learn more.”

• “…share icon when you use Now on Tap to easily share what’s on your screen”
• “…if you’re reading a news article you can select a specific word, like crustacean, and get a definition and links to relevant apps.”
• “You can also get quick info about images on your screen. Let’s say you’re scrolling through the Google Photos app and see a photo you can’t quite place. Simply touch and hold the home button to get a helpful card with more info.”
• “So if you’re using Google Maps and come across a location or a restaurant review in a foreign language, just long press the home button and continue reading.”
• “If you’re standing in front of the Bay Bridge, you can hold up your phone, open your camera app, touch and hold the home button, and get a helpful card with deep links to relevant apps. This works for more than just famous structures like the Bay Bridge, you can even point your camera at a movie poster or magazine and get additional info about what you’re looking at.”
• “…if you’re reading an article about Pluto and are interested in learning about NASA, discover mode will show you a stream of links to YouTube videos, news articles and more.”
• “Next time you’re shopping, you can simply point your camera at the barcode and get helpful cards related to that object, such as user reviews. This feature will work with packaged products, books, DVDs and more!”

To me, that is all emblematic of Google chasing the voice assistant craze and changing the previous product completely fairly than conserving what labored, or even constructing off of it.

Specifically, Now on Tap (and extra broadly, Google Now) was a superb phone assistant. What changed it was a voice assistant that began on audio system after which was dropped at telephones in order that the firm may say Assistant offered an end-to-end expertise on each type issue. (The peak of this was “Google Assistant” being listed subsequent to Android below working programs on the Pixel 3 specs web page.) Google made strikes to make Assistant extra visible on telephones and Smart Displays, however I believe hindsight proves that Assistant was too voice-first to Android’s detriment and ignored the display.

I believe the takeaway right here is that it’s helpful for telephones to have a wise assistant that may be evoked at will. Maybe the Android workforce ought to construct it because it’s extra intimately conscious of what the platform can do, in addition to what so as to add to assist that imaginative and prescient.

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