The words haven’t changed. You still say “Hey Google,” or hold down the power button, and something on your phone starts listening. But on a growing number of Android devices, the voice that answers is no longer Google Assistant. It’s Gemini, Google’s AI model, and the switch is now well underway.

In an email to users, reported in full by Droid Life, Google said: “We will begin removing access to Google Assistant starting on September 4.” It added that “this process may take a few weeks to reach everyone,” and that once it does, “Gemini will appear instead of the previous Google Assistant.” Google’s Android Auto help page puts it more simply: “Gemini is replacing Google Assistant on most mobile devices.”

This has been coming for a while. In March 2025, Brian Marquardt, who runs product management for the Gemini app, wrote on Google’s blog that “the classic Google Assistant will no longer be accessible on most mobile devices.” At the time, it seems Google expected that to happen later in 2025. It slipped into 2026, but the plan stayed the same.

Which devices are changing

Phones and tablets are the main part of this phase. Google’s email says the switch also covers devices paired with your phone: “Watches running Wear OS,” “Headphones or earbuds compatible with Gemini,” and “Vehicles running Android Auto projected from a user’s mobile device.”

For watches, Google’s Wear OS help page says you need Wear OS 4 or later. Gemini works on the watch “when Gemini is also your digital assistant on the phone connected to your watch.”

There are exceptions:

  • Cars with Google built in. “For cars with Google built-in, Google Assistant will continue to function beyond September 4, 2026,” the email says. In these cars, Google’s software runs in the dashboard itself. Android Auto is different: it projects your phone onto the car’s screen, so it switches along with your phone.
  • Google TV. The email points to “separate plans” for TVs and gives no date.

Older phones are less clear-cut. The email limits the switch to devices that meet “the minimum system requirements” and are in “a region where Gemini is available.”

For Pixel phones, Google’s Pixel help page puts that bar at Android 10 or later and 2 GB of RAM. The email doesn’t say what happens to phones below it.

What about smart speakers?

Speakers and smart displays are on a separate track. Google’s replacement there is called Gemini for Home. In an August 2025 post, Anish Kattukaran, chief product officer for Google Home and Nest, wrote: “Over time, Gemini for Home will replace Google Assistant on existing speakers and displays, with free and paid versions.” It’s still in early access. Google’s help page lists 20 countries, including the US, UK, Canada and Australia, and 10 languages.

Google says it works with “all Google Home and Nest speakers and displays released since 2016,” but not every device gets the same version:

  • Full experience, including Gemini Live (a more conversational mode): the new Google Home Speaker, Nest Hub (2nd gen), Nest Audio, Nest Mini (2nd gen) and Nest Hub Max. The first-generation Nest Hub and Google Home Mini were added in July, according to Google’s release notes.
  • Most features but no Gemini Live: the original Google Home, Google Home Max, Nest Wifi points and third-party speakers.

The basic switch is free. “Core features like controlling your devices, setting timers, and asking questions are free,” Google says. Gemini Live needs a Google Home Premium subscription. Google’s store page lists the Standard plan at $10 a month or $100 a year. The Advanced plan, which adds more camera features, is $20 a month or $200 a year. Google also says that Premium comes at no extra cost with its AI Pro plan (Standard) and AI Ultra plan (Advanced).

The switch is one-way. “Once you switch your home to Gemini for Home voice assistant, it can’t switch back to Google Assistant,” Google’s help page says.

What works differently

For everyday requests, most people won’t notice much. According to Google, “Gemini will understand the same commands as Google Assistant and also give you the option to speak naturally.” Marquardt’s post says the Gemini app was updated to handle the most requested Assistant tasks, “such as playing music, setting timers, or taking action from your lock screen.”

The differences show up at the edges, and Google lists some of them itself.

  • Audio: “Podcasts, news and radio stations, and some third-party music providers aren’t currently supported in Gemini.”
  • Interpreter mode: The help page tells you to switch back to Google Assistant to use it, which won’t be possible once the change reaches your phone.
  • Languages: “Hey Google” and Voice Match aren’t available in 14 languages, including Greek, Hebrew, Ukrainian, Finnish and Hungarian.

Google also admits that Assistant hasn’t fully gone away under the hood: “Gemini is still learning, so Google Assistant will help power some familiar quick voice action features, depending on your settings.”

How to tell what you’re using

The quickest check is to say “Hey Google” or long-press your power button. If the Gemini screen opens, with its sparkle-shaped logo, your phone has already switched. If the older Assistant appears, your phone either hasn’t been switched yet or falls into one of the exceptions above.

For speakers and displays, the switch arrives as a notification in the Google Home app that reads “Introducing Gemini for Home.” It can also appear as a banner in the app’s settings. It only shows up once your device has new enough firmware: version 3.76 or later on speakers, and Fuchsia version 28 or later on displays.

The end of a decade-old assistant

“When we launched Google Assistant in 2016,” Marquardt wrote, natural language processing “unlocked a more natural way to get help from Google.” Its replacement keeps the same wake word and most of the same everyday abilities, with a much larger AI model underneath.

For users, the practical advice is simple: try the commands you use most and see how Gemini handles them. Most will carry over. The ones that don’t are worth finding out about now, rather than the next time you ask your kitchen speaker to set a timer while your hands are full.