Over the past several months, the question surrounding Google's next smart devices hasn't been when they will arrive, but if they will arrive. After all, Google's been slowly but steadily discontinuing older smart products (the Nest Protect, the Nest x Yale Lock) while leaving their replacements to third parties. At time same time, its aging line of Nest smart speakers and displays has been languishing. But Google has previously hinted that new Google Home smart devices are on tap for later this year, and during the company's big Made by Google event today, we may have gotten a glimpse of one. During some pre-recorded banter between Milwaukee Bucks player Giannis Antetokounmpo and F1 driver Lando Norris, the camera panned over to reveal a small, slightly squished sphere with a gray exterior and a telltale light ring encircling its narrow base.

Nope, it's not just you: Reports of Google Assistant strugglng to perform even basic smart home commands have been surging in recent weeks, and now Google is admitting that something's amiss. The lead executive for Google's Home and Nest division tweeted on X that he's heard the complaints "loud and clear" and revealed that his team is "actively working on major improvements." "I want to acknowledge the recent feedback about Google Assistant reliability on our home devices," said Anish Kattukaran, the director of product management for Google Home and Nest. "I sincerely apologize for what you're experiencing and feeling!" Kattukaran's assurances come after a steep rise in complaints about Google Assistant on Google's Nest speakers and displays. Some users have been reporting that their Assistant routines have stopped working, while others say their Assistant-enabled devices have lost contact with smart lights, fail to play Spotify playlists, or can no longer control their Chromecast streaming devices with voice commands.

From game-changing text diffusion models and cutting-edge AR glasses to AI videos with sound and virtual clothing try-ons, there was plenty of amazing tech to see during Google's I/O keynote on Tuesday. The closest we got to a smart home shout-out was when a Google exec said that Gemini--the star of the show--is "coming to your watch, your car dashboard, even your TV." As Google puts its Google TV Streamer under the umbrella of smart home, we'll count that as a fleeting reference. Officially, Google has promised that Gemini is coming to Nest devices. Gemini on Nest speakers has been available on a public-preview basis for months now, and back in March, Google confirmed that a "new experience powered by Gemini" is coming to smart speakers and displays.

The writing was already on the wall, but now it's official: The Google Assistant era is over. In a blog post Friday, Google announced plans for Google Assistant's final phase-out, starting on mobile and continuing with tablets, cars, and mobile-connected devices such as headphones and tablets. Finally, Google Assistant will be going away on Nest smart speakers and displays as well as on Google TV devices. Google Assistant's replacement will, of course, be Gemini, Google's entry in the generative AI race. Gemini itself will become the new assistant on Google mobile devices such as phones and tablets, while a "new experience powered by Gemini" is coming to smart speakers and displays.

Both Amazon and Apple are playing it safe when it comes to allowing generative AI on their respective smart speakers. On the other hand, you can already chat with Google's Gemini AI on a Nest device, and Google has now detailed how you can get in on the test. The whole "there's Gemini in my Nest!" hubbub began earlier this month, when some Nest speaker users began noticing that Google Assistant was speaking in two different voices: the standard Assistant voice, and a deeper, more loquacious voice that most suspected was powered by Gemini. Google has now confirmed that it's testing Gemini on certain Nest devices, and (as spotted by 9to5Google), it's even published a support page detailing how you, too, can give Gemini a spin on your Nest speaker. Here's what you'll need to do: Now it's time to give Gemini on your Nest speakers a whirl.

A smattering of Google Home users are reporting that their Nest speakers are--when asked the right voice command--chatting with a new voice, a sign that the promised Gemini makeover for Google Assistant is starting to roll out. In a video posted on Reddit, a Google Nest Mini user asked "Hey Google, what's up," and got an unusually loquacious reply in a new voice: "What's happening right now is that we're on a giant rock moving through space at 1,000 miles an hour and orbiting a giant star made up mostly of hydrogen. Also, we're chatting, which I enjoy." When the Nest user asked a more basic follow-up question about the weather, Google Assistant answered in its regular voice with a typical weather report. According to 9to5Google, you can tell if the Gemini-enhanced Assistant has made its way to your Nest speakers by asking, "Hey Google, what's up?"

Google Home no longer needs to lean solely on smart home devices like thermostats to know whether or not you're around. Home's optional presence sensing feature can now use interactions with Nest speakers and smart displays to help detect activity in your abode, letting it perform automated actions. If you talk to your Nest Audio or tap your Nest Hub, for instance, Google may know to turn the lights on. Second-gen Nest Hubs can also use their Soli radar sensor to tell when you're close. You can enable presence sensing in the Google Home app for Android and iOS by visiting the Features section in the settings.

Smart speakers have become so ubiquitous lately that you most likely have more than one set up at home. Whether you're using smart speakers from Google, Amazon, or Apple, you can send audio to several speakers at once, configure them as stereo pairs, or even get your music to follow you from room to room. Google not long ago rebranded its Home speakers as Nest speakers, so you might have one or more of each--but they'll still work together no matter what the label says. Speaker management is handled through the Google Home app for Android or iOS. Open up the app and you'll see all your Nest speakers listed, together with any other connected smart home devices like Chromecasts and Nest cameras.

Users around the world can now use Google's Assistant to play and control Spotify podcasts in English, Spotify has confirmed to Engadget. Until now, the voice assistant has only supported its own Google Podcasts, with third-party services limited to music streaming only. However, recent rumors suggested that the third-party podcast support was coming, starting with Spotify. You can enable the feature by heading to your Assistant device's settings in the Google Home app (on a smartphone or tablet) and choosing Spotify as the default podcast provider. You'll be able to find more information here from Spotify once the news post goes live.

It's already pretty easy to ask Google Assistant to forget what you just said, or to forget all your conversations for the day. Soon, though, there will be an easy way to keep the Assistant from remembering what you said in the first place. Google just announced that Guest mode is coming to Nest speakers and other Google Assistant-enabled devices in the "coming weeks." You'll be able to activate Guest mode by giving the Assistant a voice command (Google didn't reveal what the exact command is yet), and while Guest mode is on, Google Assistant won't remember anything you say. A second command will disable Guest mode, at which point the Assistant will resume saving your interactions with it.