- The Galaxy S25 phones lets you pick your default voice assistant.
- Gemini is now enabled by default instead of Bixby.
- Bixby is still around for the people who want it.
Update, January 22, 2024 (03:24 PM ET): Bixby is no longer the sole headlining act when it comes to digital assistants on Samsung’s flagship phones, with owners of the new Galaxy S25 able to summon Google Gemini right from their power button. But Samsung really wants to emphasize that this new prominence for Gemini doesn’t mean that Bixby is being put out to pasture, and the S25 is clever enough to contextually connect you with the right assistant for the task at hand. The company explains, in an email to Android Authority:
Gemini and Bixby can both be activated depending on the use case / what is being asked. Gemini and / or Bixby is activated depending on what you ask your device to do. For example, if you’re looking for a restaurant – Gemini will be activated because it’s a search function, but if you ask to add something to your Samsung Calendar, Bixby will activate because it’s a Samsung app.