Gemini AI now handles multi-step tasks on Samsung Galaxy S26 and Pixel 10 in major Android update

Gemini will soon order your DoorDash and book your rides

Karandeep Singh Oberoi is a Durham College Journalism and Mass Media graduate who joined the Android Police team in April 2024, after serving as a full-time News Writer at Canadian publication MobileSyrup. Prior to joining Android Police, Oberoi worked on feature stories, reviews, evergreen articles, and focused on 'how-to' resources. Additionally, he informed readers about the latest deals and discounts with quick hit pieces and buyer's guides for all occasions. Oberoi lives in Toronto, Canada. When not working on a new story, he likes to hit the gym, play soccer (although he keeps calling it football for some reason🤔) and try out new restaurants in the Greater Toronto Area. Google just announced a suite of new updates that are hitting the Android ecosystem, bringing not just an enhanced version of Circle to Search to some of the latest flagships, but also the ability for Gemini to step into the role of a true autonomous agent that can tackle your multistep to-do lists. The release coincides with Samsung's Galaxy Unpacked, and naturally, these new capabilities are making their way to Samsung's new flagships too. Related I found a Gemini feature so good, I deleted a bunch of apps Your phone's home screen is about to get a lot cleaner Posts 16 By Ben Khalesi The headline feature is Gemini's new ability to handle your multistep daily tasks on Android. Meant to automate repetitive tasks, the beta feature essentially brings to life the agentic reality that we've previously reported on. Although Google didn't fully detail the feature, it did say that users will be able to "simply long-press the power button and ask Gemini to help book you a ride home or reorder your last meal on DoorDash." When prompted, Gemini will work in the background, allowing you to continue working on other tasks on your phone. According to Google, the new feature is built to prioritize safety and privacy with: Control: Automations begin with your command and stop as soon as the task is finished. Transparency: You can monitor Gemini's progress live via notifications, allowing you to view, jump in or stop the task. Access: Gemini automates the task by running the app you need in a secure, virtual window on your phone. This means Gemini can only access limited apps, and not the rest of your device. Google shared an image of the new feature in action, and it looks like it will take agentic automation as far as possible without actually spending your money. Take DoorDash, for example. Gemini will be able to navigate menus, add items, feed in your address, and more, but it will leave the final 'place order' tap to you, allowing you to go through the order and ensure that the tool hasn't made any mistakes (which it might). The feature will roll out in beta "soon." At launch, it will be limited to the Galaxy S26 series and the Pixel 10, Pixel 10 Pro, and Pixel 10 Pro XL in the US and Korea. Circle to Search now has multi-object recognition Google is leveling up Circle to Search (CtS), giving the tool the ability to explore multiple objects in an image, all at once. For example, up until now, if you saw a room that you liked and wanted to replicate the aesthetic, you had to circle the lamp, then the rug, then the chair, and so on. With today's update, you're free to circle the whole image and use relevant queries like "find similar furniture and decor elements at stores near me." Similarly, let's say you see a photo of someone online, and you like their outfit, you should now be able to tap, scribble, or circle the entire outfit and have CtS identify every component and find similar items for you. Once you find the statement piece that you're looking for, Google's virtual try-on integration will now let you see what the outfit will look like one you directly from within CtS. Similar to Gemini's agentic update, CtS' enhancement is only hitting the Pixel 10 series and the Galaxy S26 series for now. Scam Detection hits the Galaxy S26 In January this year, we reported about how Google might be ready to let Scam Detection shed its Pixel exclusivity. That time is officially here now. Google is expanding Scam Detection for phone calls to more manufacturers, and it is starting with Samsung and its latest Galaxy S26 series. Scam Detection on the new flagship series is limited to the US for now, in comparison to Scam Detection on Pixel devices, which is available in the US, Australia, Canada, India, Ireland, and the UK. It's worth noting that Scam Detection will work with the Samsung Phone app, so you won't need to migrate to the Google Phone app. It will, however, be off by default. Elsewhere, Google is bringing Scam Detection for messages to more than 20 countries. "This includes support for several languages including English, Arabic, French, German, Portuguese, and Spanish," suggests the tech giant. In addition to the expansion, the tech is now more intelligent too, leveraging on-device AI to detect the subtle slow-burn conversational patterns used in romance or job offer scams. The advanced messaging protection is now rolling out on the Google Pixel 10 series "and other select devices." It will also be available on the Samsung Galaxy S26 series. Related Android has a secret feature to help you identify scams and fraud -- here's how to use it A quicker way to flag scams on Android Posts 1 By Sanuj Bhatia

Android adds new Gemini AI features, smarter search, and better scam protection

Android's new AI will now do your errands while you pretend to be busy Google is preparing a major wave of Android upgrades to roll out alongside Samsung Unpacked on February 25, introducing new AI-powered abilities designed to simplify tasks, improve search, and enhance user safety. The updates, which will debut on devices like the Samsung Galaxy S26 and Google Pixel 10, mark one of Android's most significant ecosystem expansions this year. Android deepens AI integration across everyday tasks Recommended Videos The biggest upgrade comes through Gemini, Google's AI assistant, which can now handle complex, multi-step tasks entirely in the background. Available in beta on select devices in the U.S. and Korea, users can offload time-consuming activities - such as ordering a ride or building a grocery cart - to Gemini with a single request. As Gemini processes the task inside the relevant app, users can continue texting, browsing, or doing anything else on their phone without disruption. The feature is launching first with select food, grocery, and rideshare apps, but its design suggests broader expansion over time. It's a strategic step toward making Android devices more autonomous, reducing the friction of juggling multiple apps and errands. This shift matters because it hints at a future where smartphones proactively complete tasks rather than simply enabling them - an evolution that will particularly benefit users who rely heavily on phones for daily logistics. Circle To Search gets smarter, expands visual understanding Circle to Search, Google's screen-based gesture tool that allows users to draw around anything to learn more about it, is also receiving a major boost. The latest update expands its search capabilities from isolated items to entire looks and full outfits, identifying clothing, shoes, accessories, and more in a single gesture. This update makes Circle to Search substantially more useful for shopping, inspiration, and visual discovery. For users increasingly reliant on mobile search for lifestyle and style decisions, the ability to identify "the whole look" streamlines what used to be multiple searches into one. The expanded capability begins rolling out this week for Galaxy S26 and Pixel 10 devices, reinforcing Google's strategy of making visual search as essential as text-based queries. Stronger scam protection arrives for calls and texts Google is also improving safety with enhanced Scam Detection, powered by the on-device Gemini model. The feature, previously limited to Google's own apps, now arrives in the Samsung Phone app on Galaxy S26 devices in the U.S. for English-speaking users. The system listens for suspicious conversational patterns - such as urgent requests for money or impersonation tactics - and issues a warning before users can fall victim. Google Messages is also receiving improvements to its scam detection for text messages, adding another layer of protection against rising fraud attempts. These upgrades matter because scams frequently target users through calls and texts, and on-device AI allows detection to happen in real time without sending audio or data to the cloud. What comes next The company is expected to expand Gemini's background-task abilities to more apps, broaden Circle to Search support across devices, and widen scam protection to additional regions and languages. For Android users, these updates signal a platform increasingly shaped by AI - not as a novelty, but as a practical assistant woven into the fabric of daily device use.

A more intelligent Android on Samsung Galaxy S26

VP of Product Management and User Experiences, Android Platform We've been evolving Android with AI-moving it from an operating system into an intelligent system that learns and works for you. Building on our decade-long partnership with Samsung, we are launching new AI features on the Samsung Galaxy S26 series that help you tackle everyday tasks, find the perfect look and detect scams. When you're juggling a million things at once, sometimes you just need to delegate. We've all been there-wishing you could effortlessly hand off tasks like ordering a ride, organizing your dinner order or building your grocery cart. Usually, these tasks mean stopping your day to manually set everything up. Now, we have an early preview of how to get these tasks done. Starting as a beta feature in the Gemini app on select devices like the Galaxy S26 series, you can offload these tedious, multi-step tasks to Gemini with just a long press of the side button . Starting in the US and Korea, simply tell Gemini what you need, and it gets to work. When you choose to use this feature, Gemini runs in the background and your phone is still yours to use. Shoot a quick text or check your email while it navigates the task you requested. You remain in control with the option to view the live progress straight from your notifications, jump in or stop a task. From "Book a ride home" to "Reorder my last meal," Gemini can now help handle it for you. This beta feature will be initially available for select apps in the food, grocery and rideshare categories.

Google Just Announced Three New Gemini Upgrades for Galaxy S26 and Pixel 10

Google is rolling out upgrades to its Scam Detection AI, to help detect scams in real-time. To coincide with the Samsung Galaxy S26 launch, Google announced three Gemini-related upgrades for Android, coming first to both the Galaxy S26 series and the Google Pixel 10 range. In fact, one of these new features seems like a significant step forward for AI on smartphones: the ability for Gemini to handle multi-step tasks on an Android phone. The examples Google gives are booking a ride through Uber or reordering a meal on DoorDash, where the AI takes care of everything in the background, leaving you free to worry about, well, whether it's going to work. "When you're working on a repetitive daily task, it's easy to daydream about handing it off to someone else," explains Google in the announcement blog post. "Now, we're showing an early preview of what's possible." Understandably, this has a "beta" label as well as an "early preview" label attached, and it's initially only going to be available on Galaxy S26 phones and Pixel 10 phones (the Pixel 10a misses out). It'll also be limited to the U.S. and South Korea to begin with. As per Google, the process will be tightly controlled: Automations begin with your voice command and end as soon as the task is finished. Live notifications will keep you updated throughout, and you can jump in and take manual control at any time. What's more, the app is run in a "secure, virtual window" on your phone, with restricted app access. It's going to be interesting to see how well this works. If it works well, this feels like a notable moment in getting AI to actually do mobile tasks for us. It's not clear if Google needs third-party app permission for this, but for now the feature will be available "for select apps" in the food, grocery, and rideshare categories. Next, Google is upgrading Circle to Search on Android, the feature that lets you circle anything on screen and run a search from it. Circle to Search can do everything from find you a lamp online to warn you about a phishing scam. Now, Circle to Search will be able to search multiple elements on screen at once. It might be different pieces of furniture in a room, or different items of clothing in an outfit. You don't actually make the selections yourself: You just circle the relevant area (or the entire screen), and Gemini picks out the various constituent parts. "We know that sometimes you aren't just looking for a single thing on your screen -- you're looking for the whole thing," says Google. "Whether you're curating a mood board, building an entire outfit or just satisfying your multi-layered curiosity...Circle to Search is getting a whole lot more helpful." Google is also embedding the ability to virtually try on clothes from your phone in the Circle to Search flow. It's similar to the Gemini multi-step process above, with the AI taking on several sequential tasks to (in theory) be even more useful -- technically, Google calls it a query fan-out technique. Again, this will be exclusive to Galaxy S26 and Pixel 10 phones, with no word yet on this potentially expanding to other handsets. Finally, the last upgrade is more of a wider roll out than a new feature. The Scam Detection AI that Android uses to detect if you're being scammed in calls in real time is coming to the Galaxy S26 series for users in the U.S. It's already offered on multiple Pixel models in the U.S., the UK, Australia, Canada, India, and Ireland. The same technology is also currently available in Google Messages to catch text-based scams, and Google says it's "enhancing" how this works to recognize more varied scams, starting with Galaxy S26 and Pixel 10 devices. The new and improved tech will use on-device models to better spot techniques used by scammers.

New Gemini Features Arrive with the Samsung Galaxy S26 Series - Phandroid

The Samsung Galaxy S26 series finally official, and with it comes a new wave of AI features courtesy of Google Gemini. In addition to the Pixel smartphone lineup, Google also gives early access to many of its Gemini features to Samsung's flagship devices, and the S26 phones are no exception. For one, Gemini will now be able to take over your to-do list. Users can now essentially hand off tasks for Gemini, even those which usually require multiple steps to complete, such as when booking a cab or sorting out your grocery cart. Gemini will continue running in the backend while processing these tasks, allowing users to perform other tasks like checking their emails or messages. As it is a beta feature, there are some limitations -- at the moment, it will initially be available for users the United States and Korea, and will be limited for select food, rideshare, and grocery apps. Circle to Search also gets a new update, which now lets users search for everything on their display instead of a single highlighted item. A new "find the look" feature will also roll out this week, allowing users to search for specific clothing items and even try them on virtually through their phone. The feature is currently exclusive for the Samsung Galaxy S26 and Pixel 10. Meanwhile, Scam Detection for phone calls will also be available for Samsung Galaxy S26 series devices for the United States, which will use Google's on-device Gemini model; Google adds that it's also added some improvements for Scam Detection via Google Messages, which will be able to better identify potential false messages including job scams and even romance scams.