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Google gives all Android app developers a free boost if they accept it

AI is the latest trend in the smartphone industry – well, and apparently tri-foldable phones too – and Google wants everyone in on it. The company gives developers access to Gemini Nano, its AI model that can run on the device without an internet connection.

This access is currently limited to Pixel 9 phones, but further compatibility will be rolled out soon. Developers can integrate Nano into their third-party apps to enhance them with AI. We could soon see most major apps on the Play Store have AI support.

Nano integration is currently very limited. Developers can only use it for the standard text actions that modern AI is known for, such as:

  • Summary
  • Rewording
  • Proofreading
  • Smart answers

Google claims that multimodal usage will soon follow, meaning support for images, voice and perhaps even video.

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A lot of current pixel marketing involves twins. | Video credit – Google

So what does this mean for the end user? We can expect that we will soon see apps that offer helpful little features in addition to their main functions. Imagine a third-party gallery app that can intelligently sort photos like Apple Intelligence. This also means that AI can be seen almost everywhere. I've already said that people who want to stay away from AI can't do so for long, and this kind of proves it. Why not Fill your app with the biggest buzzword in the industry?

At the moment, smartphone AI is more of a gimmick than a very useful tool. It simply does things you can do yourself, but faster. More impressive proof of what AI is capable of is Meta Ray-Ban's smart glasses, which just received a major free update that allows them to do all sorts of cool things.

However, with Gemini Nano also available for third-party apps in addition to supporting 16KB page sizes in Android 15, Google is keen to improve its operating system this year. That means we can expect Android phones to get even better in the coming years, both in terms of practicality and performance.

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