Google Assistant set for Android TV
January 5, 2017
Intelligent personal assistant Google Assistant is making its way to Android TV in the coming months. As part of an upcoming update on supported TVs and set-top boxes powered by Android TV, users will be able to ask the Google Assistant for help so they can enjoy the content they love, faster than ever, on the best screen in their house.
Writing in the Google blog, Sascha Prueter, Director Android TV and Gummi Hafsteinsson, Product Lead, Google Assistant promise “No more typing or struggling to get to what you’re looking for — just ask the Google Assistant for help and you’re off to the races.”
From playing media to planning for the day, they suggest some ways the Google Assistant on Android TV can help:
- Play content: “Play Stranger Things on Netflix”.
- Discover content: “Search YouTube for Jimmy Kimmel”. And you can also ask a follow-up if you’re interested in more videos by saying: “Play the second one.”
- Get answers: “Tell me about Jurassic Park”
- Set the right mood: “Dim the lights”.
- Get ready for your day: “How long will it take to get to work?”
In the coming months, the Google Assistant on Android TV will come to the NVIDIA SHIELD, along with all Android TVs in the US running Android 6.0 Marshmallow or Android 7.0 Nougat, such as the AirTV Player, Sharp Aquos, Sony Bravia, Xiaomi Mi Box, and more. And once available, the NVIDIA SHIELD will be the first TV device to offer a hands-free Assistant experience. “So ‘Dim the lights’ will only be an ‘OK Google’ away,” they say.
“Over time, you’ll also see the Assistant come to other new surfaces, like smartwatches running Android Wear 2.0, Android-powered in-car infotainment systems and many other types of devices through the Embedded Google Assistant SDK,” they advise.