How to test Gemini in Google Assistant on Nest Mini, Audio

After being spotted by some earlier this month, Google has detailed how Gemini “AI-powered answers” in Google Assistant works on the Nest Mini and Audio.

A new support document details how: “You can experiment with new, more natural sounding voices and get AI-powered answers from Google Assistant with help from Gemini.” Specifically, Google Assistant will use an “LLM to respond to a wider range of questions and provide more in-depth, AI-powered answers on general knowledge topics.”

To access, you need to join the Google Home Public Preview and enable a secondary “Experimental AI features” setting on that page, which is not yet widely available.

Notably, only the Nest Audio and 2nd-gen Nest Mini supports this experience as of right now. Nest Hubs are currently excluded, while you must also have Voice Match enabled. Lastly, this “AI-powered experience is only available in English, in the US, and to users 18 and over.”

In terms of what’s new, you can:

• Learn more about a topic: You could ask “Can giraffes talk to each other?” to learn about giraffe communication, habitat, and more.
• Ask follow-up questions: You can always say “Hey Google” to ask follow-up questions.
• Interrupt Google Assistant’s response at any time: Just say “Hey google” and ask for more information or change your prompt.

This is not too different from what’s possible with Gemini Live on Android and iOS.

Google provides the standard disclaimer “AI-powered answers from Google Assistant are experimental”: 

• Don’t rely on these answers as medical, legal, financial, or other professional advice.
• These answers do not represent Google’s views and should not be attributed to Google.
• Double-check these answers as they may be inaccurate or inappropriate answers about people.

On the voices front, there should be “new, more natural sounding voices” under Google Home Settings tab > Google Assistant > Assistant voice & sounds when this experience is enabled.

When you’re using this experience, there will be a “chime before Google Assistant responds with an AI-powered answer.”