Google introduced on Tuesday that it’s releasing a slew of Android 16 updates, together with new basic Android and accessibility options. The rollout of the brand new Android 16 options, that are first coming to Pixel gadgets, marks a brand new chapter in how Android updates are delivered, as the corporate is shifting from a single yearly replace to extra frequent releases.
Android 16 is including AI-powered notification summaries that condense lengthy messages and group chats into fast, glanceable overviews. A brand new “Notification organizer” will mechanically group and silence lower-priority notifications, resembling promotions, information, and social alerts.
The replace additionally brings extra methods to customise gadgets, with customers having access to customized icon shapes, themed icons, and the choice to mechanically darken mild apps, even people who don’t have their very own native darkish theme.
Moreover, there’s a brand new Parental Controls possibility inside Android Settings that enables dad and mom to set display screen cut-off dates, create downtime schedules, management app utilization, and extra for his or her kids.
These updates are beginning to roll out with Android 16 on eligible Pixel gadgets beginning Tuesday.
Google can also be releasing a number of new Android options that aren’t particular to Android 16. A brand new beta characteristic known as “Call Reason” permits customers to flag calls to saved contacts as “urgent.” Recipients will see this on their incoming name display screen and comprehend it’s time-sensitive. In the event that they miss the decision, the “urgent” word will keep of their name historical past.
Google can also be launching “Expressive Captions” that show the complete emotion of speech with tags like [sad] or [joyful], whether or not it’s a video message or a put up on social media. The corporate says it will enable customers to glean the complete context of what’s being stated when the sound is off.
Techcrunch occasion
San Francisco
|
October 13-15, 2026
The tech large is making it simpler to identify and exit undesirable group chats. If an unknown quantity invitations a person to a gaggle, they’ll get an alert that exhibits key details about the group. The person can then rapidly select to answer, depart the chat, or block and report the quantity.
As well as, Pinned tabs in Chrome now work the identical approach as on desktop, which suggests pinned pages keep saved on the entrance of the browser, letting customers decide up the place they left off.
Google can also be updating Circle to Search, its characteristic that permits customers to search from anyplace on their telephone by utilizing gestures like circling, highlighting, scribbling or tapping. Customers can now analyze suspicious messages with the characteristic — after initiating Circle to Search, an AI Overview will seem indicating whether or not the message is probably going a rip-off.
For accessibility updates, Google is making it simpler to make use of voice dictation with TalkBack on Android. Customers will quickly be capable of begin dictating in Gboard with a two-finger double-tap. From there, Good Dictation with Gemini will let customers sort and likewise edit textual content utilizing pure instructions. For instance, customers can say “replace Monday with Tuesday” to repair a date, or ask Gemini to “make it shorter.”
Google can also be updating its “Guided Frame” characteristic within the Pixel digicam app. Beforehand, the characteristic has notified customers about issues like a face within the body. Now, it would present a extra in-depth description, resembling “one girl with a yellow T-shirt sits on the sofa and looks at the dog.”
Moreover, customers not have to bodily faucet their telephone to start out utilizing Voice Entry, which permits customers to regulate their Android gadgets with voice instructions. Now, customers simply have to say “Hey Google, start Voice Access” to start controlling their telephone hands-free.
The corporate can also be launching Quick Pair for listening to aids, beginning with listening to aids from Demant, a Danish firm that owns a number of main listening to support manufacturers, together with Oticon, Sonic, and Bernafon.
