Google I/O 2024: all the news from the developer conference

Alongside Google’s ongoing developer-focused I/O conference comes the latest release of Android 15, which is now in its second beta. It’s got some cool new features, like the ability to now hide a collection of apps inside a “private space,” customizable vibrations so you can notice different types of notifications just by feeling, and also richer widget previews.

The new private space function is the most interesting of the bunch: it can hide apps you don’t want others seeing into a biometric or PIN-protected container in the app drawer. It’s one of several new security features coming to Android.

Google is adding several new apps to its in-car infotainment platforms, while also making it easier for developers to get their apps approved faster and with fewer complications.

Google said that two new streaming services, Max and Peacock, are coming to cars with Google built-in. These include models from companies like Renault, Polestar, and Volvo. (Other brands with Google built-in, like Ford, Acura, and Honda, do not support video streaming while parked yet.)

Google is lowering the barriers for new apps to be added to Android Auto and cars with Google software built-in, making it easier for developers of gaming and streaming apps to get them added to those platforms. It is also releasing new guidelines for developing apps for various screen sizes and shapes.

Google is launching a new program for car-ready apps, essentially expediting the process for developers to get their apps approved for in-car platforms. As part of this program, Google says it will “proactively” review mobile apps that are already compatible with the increasingly large-sized screens found in more modern vehicles.

Wear OS 5 is on its way, and with it, Google says Android smartwatch users ought to see even better battery life. Running a marathon, for example, will purportedly consume 20 percent less battery than on Wear OS 4.

This emphasis on battery life is similar to last year’s Wear OS 4 announcement — and for good reason. Wear OS 4 helped the Pixel Watch 2 last an entire day, something the original struggled to do. That improved battery life has seemingly bought some goodwill. Google says that, in the last year, the Wear OS user base grew by an impressive 40 percent across 160 countries and regions.

Google is announcing an array of new security features as it releases its second Android 15 beta, including a feature that can detect the moment your phone is swiped from your hands. Some of these updates will be included with Android 15 when it arrives this fall, but theft detection and a number of other features will be available to phones with much older OS versions, too — bringing them to many more people.

Theft Detection Lock works by recognizing the unusual motions that would indicate someone has yanked your phone out of your hand or a table in front of you. To prevent a thief from being able to access information on your device, the screen automatically locks. The system looks for other signals that indicate foul play, too, and will be able to lock the screen for protection if someone tries to take it off the network to prevent remote access.

ADT has confirmed to The Verge that it’s rolling out a big upgrade to its ADT Plus home security system. The all-new hardware and software platform for ADT Plus features new ADT hardware, deeper integration with Google Nest hardware, and the ability to automatically disarm using facial recognition to let trusted neighbors into your home when you’re away. 

I first reported on the new system last October, but until now, ADT had declined to comment despite publishing multiple support pages about it on its site. This week, ADT spokesperson Ben Tamblyn confirmed to The Verge the new ADT Plus system has started rolling out to some states and will be available nationwide in the coming months. The system can be self-installed or professionally installed and can work with ADT’s professional monitoring service.

After announcing that it would be bringing an app to Android way back in 2022, Eve is finally close to launching its Android app, possibly by this fall. Android users will be able to control Eve’s smart home products natively — including smart plugs, smart lights, and smart shades. They will be able to access features such as energy management that are not yet available in the Matter platforms they work with (including Google Home and Samsung SmartThings). Prior to Matter, Eve devices only worked with Apple HomeKit and were only controllable on iOS devices.

“The highly anticipated app will allow Matter devices to be added, controlled and automated directly and without any proprietary connection mechanism or fragile cloud-to-cloud integrations,” the company said in a press release. “For the growing range of Matter-enabled Eve devices, Eve for Android will provide advanced functionality, such as measurement of energy consumption and generation for Eve Energy solutions, autonomous heating schedules for the smart thermostat Eve Thermo or Adaptive Shading for roller blinds in the Eve Blinds Collection.”

Why can’t you just plug a USB cable between two PCs, drag your mouse cursor between their screens, and drop files between them, as if they were a single machine? Well, you can and have for years — but Intel may be about to turbocharge that idea with Thunderbolt Share.

It’s a proprietary app that Intel will be licensing to laptop, desktop, and accessory manufacturers to bundle with new hardware. Install it on two Thunderbolt 4 or 5 computers, connect them with a Thunderbolt cable, and you should be able to share your mouse, keyboard, screens, storage, and other USB peripherals; drag and drop files at Thunderbolt speeds; and sync data between them. It won’t let you share an internet connection, though.

Google has announced that it’s opening up API access to its Google Home smart home platform. This means that any app maker — smart home-related or not — can access the over 600 million devices connected to Google Home and tap into the Google Home automation engine to create smart solutions for their users inside their own app.

The Home APIs can access any Matter device or Works with Google Home device and allows developers to build their own experiences using Google Home devices and automations into their apps on both iOS and Android. This is a significant move for Google in opening up its smart home platform, following shutting down its Works with Nest program back in 2019.

Google I/O introduced an AI assistant that can see and hear the world, while OpenAI put its version of a Her-like chatbot into an iPhone. Next week, Microsoft will be hosting Build, where it’s sure to have some version of Copilot or Cortana that understands pivot tables. Then, a few weeks after that, Apple will host its own developer conference, and if the buzz is anything to go by, it’ll be talking about artificial intelligence, too. (Unclear if Siri will be mentioned.)

AI is here! It’s no longer conceptual. It’s taking jobs, making a few new ones, and helping millions of students avoid doing their homework. According to most of the major tech companies investing in AI, weappear to be at the start of experiencing one of those rare monumental shifts in technology. Think the Industrial Revolution or the creation of the internet or personal computer. All of Silicon Valley — of Big Tech — is focused on taking large language models and other forms of artificial intelligence and moving them from the laptops of researchers into the phones and computers of average people. Ideally, they will make a lot of money in the process.

This is not a joke: Google will now let you perform a “web” search. It’s rolling out “web” searches now, and in my early tests on desktop, it’s looking like it could be an incredibly popular change to Google’s search engine.

The optional setting filters out almost all the other blocks of content that Google crams into a search results page, leaving you with links and text — and Google confirms to The Verge that it will block the company’s new AI Overviews as well.

Google has announced that the code for Project Gameface, its hands-free gaming “mouse” that you control by making faces, is now available open-source to Android developers on Tuesday.

Developers can now integrate the accessibility feature into their apps, allowing users to control the cursor with facial gestures or by moving their heads. For example, they can open their mouth to move the cursor or raise their eyebrows to click and drag.

Google says its new AI model, LearnLM, will help students with their homework.

LearnLM, a family of AI models based on Google’s other large language mode, Gemini, was built to be an expert in subjects, find and present examples in different ways like a photo or video, coach students while studying, and, in Google’s words, “inspire engagement.” 

Google made a lot of noise about its Gemini AI taking over search at its I/O conference today, but one of its flashiest demos was once again marked by the ever-present fatal flaw of every large language model to date: confidently making up the wrong answer.

During a sizzle reel for “Search in the Gemini era,” Google demoed video search, which allows you to search by speaking over a video clip. The example is a video of a stuck film advance lever on a film camera with the query “why is the lever not moving all the way,” which Gemini recognizes and provides some suggestions to fix. Very impressive!

But we may have written off Google’s Glasses too soon — because Google just revealed a new prototype pair in a blink-and-you-missed-it moment at Google I/O.

Developer conferences aren’t exactly known for having an energetic, party-like atmosphere, but thankfully, that didn’t stop Google’s latest hype man. The company’s I/O event this year was kicked off by Marc Rebillet — an artist known in online spaces for pairing improvised electronic tracks with amusing (and typically loud) vocals. He also wears a lot of robes.

“If you have no idea who I am, I would expect that,” said Rebillet. He introduced himself as an improvisational musician who “makes stuff up.”

Google I/O just ended — and it was packed with AI announcements. As expected, the event focused heavily on Google’s Gemini AI models, along with the ways they’re being integrated into apps like Workspace and Chrome.

If you didn’t get to tune in to the event live, you can catch up with all the latest from Google in the roundup below.