Samsung Galaxy S26 gets 'Hey Plex' as Perplexity joins multi-agent AI ecosystem

'Hey Plex' is landing on the Galaxy S26 series as Perplexity joins Galaxy AI

The company has hinted that more Galaxy devices could also get this feature. Samsung just announced that it's doubling down on agentic AI for the Galaxy S26 series with a new Perplexity integration. The company says Perplexity will be introduced as an additional AI agent on the upcoming flagship Galaxy phones, sitting alongside Samsung's existing AI experiences, including the revamped Bixby. The announcement marks a big shift in how Samsung sees Galaxy AI evolving. It's no longer just a bundle of smart AI features, but something that can coordinate multiple AI agents depending on what you're trying to do on your phone. The company cites recent insights showing that nearly eight in 10 users now rely on more than two different AI agents, choosing different tools depending on the task. Galaxy S26 users will be able to invoke Perplexity using a dedicated "Hey, Plex" wake phrase. It can also be launched by pressing and holding the phone's side button. As for functionality, Perplexity can be used inside core Samsung apps like Notes, Calendar, Gallery, Clock, Reminders, and select third-party apps to continue workflows without manually managing multiple apps. This isn't Perplexity as just another app or chatbot. Samsung is positioning it as a system-level AI agent that can understand context across the OS and help complete multi-step tasks in the background. For Galaxy users, this could mean asking a question, pulling in relevant information, creating notes or reminders, and scheduling events, all with a single prompt without hopping between separate apps. Samsung also recently rolled out the beta program for its latest version of Bixby, which is also being upgraded to operate as a conversational device agent. However, rather than locking users into a single assistant or experience, Samsung says it's building an open, multi-agent ecosystem where different AI services can coexist on the same device. Crucially, Samsung emphasizes that Galaxy AI operates at the framework and OS level, not just inside individual apps.

Galaxy S26 will have a 'Hey Plex' Perplexity hotword alongside 'Hey Google' & Bixby

Samsung has confirmed that the upcoming Galaxy S26 series will support a new Perplexity hotword - "Hey Plex" - as part of an "open and inclusive integrated AI ecosystem" that also includes Google and Bixby, which have their own hotwords. "Hey Google" has been around on Android devices for years now, but it lives right alongside an optional "Hey Bixby" hotword on Samsung Galaxy devices. Now, Perplexity is being thrown into the mix. Samsung says in a press release that "Hey Plex" will activate Perplexity on "upcoming flagship Galaxy devices," aka the Galaxy S26 series. It's a "system-level" integration that points to Perplexity being pre-installed as well, as was previously reported. Perplexity also appears to be used in the Bixby reboot. This is a part of Samsung's "vision for a rich, open and integrated multi-agent ecosystem" in Galaxy AI as "nearly 8 in 10 users now rely on more than two types of AI agents," the company says. Samsung explains: As part of this multi-agent expansion, Samsung will introduce Perplexity as an additional AI agent on upcoming flagship Galaxy devices. Users will be able to access Perplexity through a dedicated voice wake phrase, "Hey Plex," or via quick-access controls such as pressing and holding the side button, making contextual assistance easy to reach when needed. Deeply embedded across select Samsung apps -- including Samsung Notes, Clock, Gallery, Reminder and Calendar, as well as select third-party apps -- Perplexity's AI agent enables smoother, multi-step workflows, allowing users to move seamlessly between tasks without manually managing individual apps. This system-level approach offers Galaxy users a richer and more flexible AI experience across the device. It's unclear is this will be exclusive to Galaxy S26, but Samsung hints it could be on other devices with details on "supported devices" to be announced "soon." So it sounds like we'll hear more next week alongside the Galaxy S26 announcement.