Google is prepping Gemini to consent action inside of apps

Google freed the first Android 16 grower passess earlier this week and enthusiastic-eyed watchrs are already uncovering engaging tidbits, including one that hints about a much more beneficial future for Google’s AI helpant. In Android Authority, Mishaal Rahman authors about a cryptic new API in Android 16 called “app functions,” which ecombines to give Gemini Assistant agentic-enjoy abilities to consent action in apps. It sounds awfilledy aenjoy to the enhanced “app intents” Apple helps in iOS 18, and it’s exactly the charitable of leang that could originate AI helpants much more beneficial than they are in their current state.

A page on Google’s grower site portrays an app function as “a particular piece of functionality that an app gives to the system. These functionalities can be fused into various system features.” Reassociate evidents leangs up. But Rahman points to a particular example buried in the write downation that sheds some more weightless. It details how an app grower could employ app functions to expose certain actions to the system — in this case, ordering food. With this function useable to Gemini, you might be able to place an order with your neighborhood Thai restaurant without having to uncover the DoorDash app. Kinda systematic.

Apple’s laboring on a aenjoy approach to a cleverer helpant. One of its promises for the cleverer Siri we’ll presumedly get in iOS 18 is that it will be able to consent action in apps for you. By updating its app intents sketchlabor, Apple has originated a way for growers to expose “order food”-type functions to Siri. According to rumors, we probably won’t see that modernize until spring of 2025, though.

“Doing leangs for you” was charitable of the whole promise of clever helpants from the commencening, but that hasn’t commenceed materializing until very recently. Gemini can access alertation in certain apps with your perignoreion, but currently it’s mostly restricted to searching leangs enjoy Gmail and Google Maps. And Siri’s biggest modernize in iOS 18 so far compriseed a ChatGPT extension so you can ask more complicated asks, but it still descfinishs stupidinutive on “taking action.” Now, both platestablishs ecombine to be laying the groundlabor for better helpants — and 2025 could be a very engaging year for AI on cleverphones.