Google just updated Gemini with a brand new voice

July 21, 2024

Google Gemini is gradually being improved and the AI chatbot now has a new voice on Android devices.
This new female voice might be part of a test and will be activated automatically without user intervention.
There is currently no way to go back to the previous voice, but this option may be added soon.

The Google Gemini chatbot has many great features, but it also has its flaws. Despite Google’s best efforts to close the feature gap between Gemini and Assistant, the former still has a lot of catching up to do. While basic features like timers and alarms are expected to arrive soon, we recently learned that Gemini could also support new voices, with the current setup only offering a single male voice. It now looks like Google has already started rolling out this change to the Gemini app, albeit in a limited way.

While Gemini only provides text answers by default, each result has a speaker icon in the top right that reads it out loud. The good folks at 9to5Google have figured out that the results are now read out in a new female voice rather than the old male voice. I’ve found that this experience is already live on my Android phone as well.

But as 9to5Google notes, there’s currently no way to go back to the previously available voice. This suggests Google is still testing new voices for Gemini, with the latest addition potentially being one of the many to be offered. The rollout currently appears to be limited to Android phones only, with the Gemini experience on the web and iPhones still using the older voice.

Unlike Gemini, Google Assistant lets users choose between 12 voices, each identified by a specific color. Since Google plans to eventually replace Assistant with Gemini, we suspect the company will roll out new voices in a similar pattern for familiarity.

Gemini is slowly catching up to Assistant

A Samsung Galaxy Z Flip 6 with the Gemini app on the outer screen.

While Google Gemini is currently unable to fully replace Assistant, it is working on ways to make it easier for users to transition to the chatbot in the future. In addition to the timers and alarms we mentioned above, Gemini recently gained the ability to respond to queries from the lock screen. While this is a useful addition to the chatbot, it still lacks some of Assistant’s features.

Google Gemini is also working on finally supporting routines, one of the key features the chatbot is missing. This should bring many Assistant users to Gemini, as the lack of routines has kept them from switching so far. Google Gemini could also get better on large-screen devices like foldables and tablets by allowing users to run two instances of the chatbot at once.