Interesting news for home enthusiasts who are using the Google ecosystem. Google announced that its Google Home system is setting the stage for enhanced user experiences with the introduction of two new AI-driven features. These integrations underlie the Gemini AI platform, redefining how users interact with and control their smart home devices.
Meet ‘Help Me Create’: A New Approach to Home Automation
Google Home’s latest brainchild, the ‘Help Me Create’ tool, provides a notable shift in home automation dynamics. Originally hinted at earlier this year, this tool contrasts sharply with the Script Editor that Google launched for its veteran users who relish writing custom routines. Help Me Create aims to cater to individuals who prefer an easy and guided approach to automation. By simply interacting with the Google Home app, homeowners can effortlessly create automations that enhance energy efficiency or dynamically control smart bulb temperatures at different times of the day.
AI Camera Search: Bringing Intelligence to Surveillance
Arguably the more compelling addition, the AI Camera Search functionality now offers users the ability to query their home surveillance cameras using natural language. With questions as simple as “Did the mail van arrive today?” or “Has the dog disturbed the flower beds?”, this feature organizes camera events into an intuitive feed. Although this capability may have a learning curve initially, this has a potential to be a really cool feature.
Extending Control with the Gemini AI Chatbot
Additionally, Google has introduced a novel extension within the Gemini AI app, enabling users to manage their smart home environments via chat-based commands on Android devices. This feature might prove advantageous for executing more complex or scheduled activities such as “Switch off all lights and power up the TV at 6 PM.” Although this functionality seems somewhat redundant alongside the existing Google Home app and Google Assistant, it may provide an alternative for specific control scenarios.
Availability and Access
As per Google’s announcement, the Help Me Create feature is making its way to Nest Aware subscribers in a phased Public Preview rollout. Likewise, the AI Camera Search is immediately accessible, also requiring a Nest Aware subscription. Meanwhile, the extension within the Gemini app, although available without a subscription, is similarly part of the Public Preview phase.
For more detailed instructions and access links, check out the official source.
