Samsung launched a wide range of new products at its Unpacked 2024, but the biggest announcement wasn’t about a smartphone, tablet, or any other physical device; it was the brand-new AI system.
With all the AI chatbots hitting the market in 2024, big tech companies have been quick to integrate the burgeoning technology into their devices as fast as possible. Now, Samsung has done the same by announcing Galaxy AI, a new AI system from the big tech firm that will substantially improve functionality on all of its new devices.
In this guide, we’ll explain the new AI system, what it does, how it compares to Bixby, and which devices you can use it on.
What Is Galaxy AI?
Galaxy AI is the new AI system from Samsung that will be present in the company’s many devices moving forward. It will streamline existing features, add new tools for users, and generally improve the functionality of the device in line with current AI technology.
“Galaxy AI is built on our innovation heritage and deep understanding of how people use their phones. We’re excited to see how our users around the world empower their everyday lives with Galaxy AI to open up new possibilities.” – Samsung press release
Samsung has long been an innovator in the industry, generally installing features on its devices that haven’t been seen before. This announcement is no different, making the company one of the first to add AI directly into smartphones, rather than as a software or app.
What Kind of Features Are Available?
As you can imagine, there are lot of new features and improved functionalities that come with Galaxy AI. Below, we’ll explain some of those features that make security, creativity, and everyday functionality that much better on Samsung devices.
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Everyday functionality
While some people use their smartphones for elaborate creative projects and in-depth gaming experiences, the majority are just using their phones are basic, everyday tasks. Fortunately, Galaxy AI puts a big emphasis on this, launching a wide range of new features aimed at improving everyday functionality.
Here are all the Galaxy AI features that can help improve your overall smartphone experience:
- Live Translate – provides two-way, real-time audio and text translations on calls. Even better, the on-device AI means that conversations are completely private with no internet connection necessary.
- Interpreter – translates real-time conversations in split screen, so you can talk to someone in-person and still understand them.
- Chat Assist – generates text conversations to match tone and content.
- Note Assist – creates summaries, produces templates, and generates cover art in the Samsung Notes app.
- Transcript Assist – transcribe, summarizes and translates voice recordings.
- Circle to Search – allows users to search for anything on the screen by simply circling, highlighting, tapping, or scribbling on an image or word.
To learn more about how these features will improve your smartphone experience, check out the Samsung press release that covered the event.
The Circle to Search feature on a Samsung Galaxy S24.
Source: Samsung
Creativity
AI advancements in the creative world have been nothing if not groundbreaking over the last year. From image generators to video editing features, these tools have become a notable, if not controversial, addition to the creative process.
Samsung understands that many of this editing is being done on their smartphones, which is why the Galaxy AI system will be used to greatly improve the overall experience. Here are some features you can use to level-up your on-device creative endeavors.
- Edit Suggestion – provides in-app suggestions immediately after an image is taken to subtly improve the composition of the photo.
- Generative Edits – expands images by filling in the background and borders when necessary.
- Instant Slow-mo – generates additional frames in a video to create the slow-motion effect with detail and quality.
For those worried about generative AI and its impact on the creative community, Samsung has assured users that all images generated by AI will feature a watermark, as well as meta data that indicates its origins.
Edit Suggestions on the Samsung Galaxy S24.
Source: Samsung
Security
As with any new technology, the launch of Galaxy AI of course raises some questions about security. Namely, how much data is this new system collecting, what is it doing with all that data, and can you turn Galaxy AI off if you don’t want it collecting the data?
The benefit of AI systems being installed directly on smartphones like Galaxy AI is that it’s not necessarily connected to the internet or an external source. Subsequently, your data is more secure, given that these devices are “end-to-end secure hardware” with “real-time threat detection and collaborative protection,” according to Samsung.
Additionally, if you aren’t comfortable with all this AI mumbo-jumbo in the first place, you can simply turn off these features through the Advanced Intelligence settings and go back to your standard, AI-less smartphone experience.
Are Galaxy AI Features Free?
For now, all Galaxy AI features are free to use, as long as you have a compatible device that can take advantage of them. However, the Samsung Galaxy S24 page features a footnote that says:
“Galaxy AI features will be provided for free until the end of 2025 on supported Samsung Galaxy devices. Different terms may apply for AI features provided by third parties.”
So, you may have to pay for these new features in the future, but for the time being, you can get all the text recommendations and editing suggestions you need at no cost.
Galaxy AI vs Bixby
If you’re at all familiar with Samsung and its AI iterations, you might be a bit confused. After all, isn’t Bixby the branded AI from Samsung that was discontinued in 2020? Well, despite being discontinued, Bixby is still in operation in devices sold before 2020, and the company claims it will remain that way for the time being.
So, what’s the difference between Galaxy AI and Bixby? For starters, Bixby is just a virtual assistant, like Alexa or Google Assistant, that can answer questions, check the weather, and control smart home devices.
In comparison, Galaxy AI is the general artificial intelligence system that Galaxy devices will use to power the unique and innovative features. Granted, with its discontinuation, it’s safe to assume that Galaxy AI will replace Bixby in the future, but until then, the two AI iterations will have to coexist on the Samsung user interface.
What Devices Have Galaxy AI?
With a big launch like this, it’s only fair to ask: How can I get my hands on this kind of groundbreaking technology?
Well, as of January 2024, the only way to take advantage of Galaxy AI features is with the new slate of Samsung S series smartphones. More specifically, you can use Galaxy AI features on the Galaxy S24, Galaxy S24+, and the Galaxy S24 Ultra.
Rest assured, though, this kind of technology isn’t going to remain this exclusive for long. With the popularity of AI, it’s safe to assume that Galaxy AI will roll out to other Samsung devices as they release in the future, so be sure to check back for frequently updates on Galaxy AI.
