YouTube Tests Google Assistant Suggestion Integration
YouTube has begun testing, connecting its suggestions for videos made by Google Assistant to its Android app. Premium subscribers can activate the “Do more with Assistant” experiment to gain access to the recommendations within the video description of whatever they are currently watching.
Assistant Ideas
YouTube Premium members can enable the feature on the youtube.com/new page. Once activated, the description section of certain videos on YouTube will include Google Assistant cards with suggestions for other things to watch based on the topic, people, or other facets of the video currently playing. Users can tap on the card to pull up a full Google Assistant search with a Knowledge Graph panel. For instance, watching a movie trailer will generate a card with the songs and musicians performing them in the trailer and other movies starring those performers.
The test runs through Oct. 27 on Android devices running in English, but Google is looking to use it as a way to garner feedback for a more widely released feature. The other experiments available for Premium subscribers include a way to download videos from web browsers and a picture-in-picture (PiP) feature that lets users keep watching YouTube videos from a miniature window while other apps are open.
Android Assistance
Android has been incorporating Google Assistant into as many of its features as possible over the last couple of years. The voice aspect has been central but not the only element of the AI that has been expanded, as indicated by the YouTube test. The Android Voice Access service for those with limited mobility was upgraded earlier this year to grasp more complex characters and can now follow a user’s eye line. That means users type vocally with the new password input mode, which allows typing by letter, including numbers and symbols. They can say “dollar sign” and get the $ symbol instead of having the words spelled out.
Meanwhile, Android’s gaze detection update lets users pause Voice Access whenever they aren’t looking at the screen so they can talk to others without accidentally typing on the phone. The change also brought upgrades to the Shortcuts feature, testing paying bills and operating other apps from the lock screen. Most recently, Android released Camera Switches so users can navigate their phone using facial expressions and gave the Lookout feature the ability to better read handwriting for those with limited eyesight.
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