The Made by Google 2024 event has begun, and while rumors were flying ahead of the event, the first announcements and reveals have come from Google's biggest hardware event of the year. Notably, this year's event takes place ahead of Apple's usual September iPhone launch, and there's a strong focus on AI that will be familiar to anyone who's watched tech events over the past two years.
The event is still airing as you read this, so you can watch the livestream, which began at 10am PST, here. But our team was able to get a look at some of the biggest announcements in advance, so let's dive right in and take a look at what the Google Pixel 9 lineup will look like, how Google's Gemini AI will be built into the devices, and other updates to Nest, Pixel Watch, and Pixel Buds.
Gemini Live released for Android
Google's answer to OpenAI's advanced voice mode is rolling out (for Google One AI Premium subscribers). Gemini Live allows for conversational back and forth between the user and the AI, allowing it to react more realistically to human speech and ideally provide more human-like responses. Both Google and OpenAI have been demoing their services over the past few months, but as AI expert Kyle Wiggers highlights, Gemini may have the advantage.
“The generative AI model architecture underlying Live, Gemini 1.5 Pro, has a longer-than-average 'context window', meaning it can ingest and reason about large amounts of data – theoretically the equivalent of hours of conversational back and forth – before formulating a response.”
The Pixel 9 series has improved camera performance and is equipped with Gemini AI
Image credit: Google
There are three phones in the standard Pixel 9 lineup, with the addition of the Pixel 9 Fold Pro (more on that later): the Pixel 9 and 9 Pro offer a higher resolution phone, while the 9 Pro XL is larger (6.8-inch display versus 6.3-inch), and each includes Gemini as the default assistant.
Google has already announced the end of Assistant as the default virtual assistant on its smartphones, and with that comes a host of camera and hardware upgrades – you can read more about it here.
Google's foldable smartphone sequel: Pixel 9 Pro Fold
Google's second foldable phone doesn't get a completely new screen, just a slightly larger 8-inch screen when fully unfolded. Like the rest of the Pixel 9 line, it's thinner, has a larger external display, and upgraded cameras. It's still priced at a steep $1,799, but of course it comes with Gemini as your assistant. Read our full rundown of the Fold here.
Google's Pixel Watch 3 doubles your options
Image credit: Google
The Pixel Watch has previously only come in a 41mm size, but this year a 45mm model has been added to the lineup. Both have smaller bezels, resulting in a larger display that's twice as bright. You can find the full rundown here, including all the must-have AI-powered features, but pricing and availability have yet to be announced.
Watch Made by Google live
If you've read this far and still want to watch the event or watch the archives, you can go here or check out the embed below.