Google I/O: What to expect from tech giant’s biggest event of the year

Anthony Cuthbertson
·2 min read
The Google logo is seen during the Google I/O annual developers conference in Mountain View, California on 10 May, 2023 (Getty Images)
The Google logo is seen during the Google I/O annual developers conference in Mountain View, California on 10 May, 2023 (Getty Images)

Google is expected to make several major announcements and unveil brand new products during its biggest event of the year on Tuesday.

The Google I/O developer conference, taking place in California, will likely include updates to Search, Maps and its Android operating system, however the biggest news will centre on artificial intelligence.

The continued integration of generative AI into its core products could include new ways to search the internet using the technology, while a brand new digital assistant to rival Apple’s Siri could also be a possibility.

“AI will be the major theme for Google I/O and we expect updates from every part of the business, focusing on how Google’s Gemini platform will become more integrated across the board,” Leo Gebbie, principal analyst at CSS Insights, told The Independent.

“All eyes will be on how AI becomes more integrated into connected devices, particularly smartphones, given the sheer scale of the opportunity. We expect news on Google’s Gemini Nano model becoming even more powerful and how this can enhance smartphone experiences.”

Rumours surrounding the AI digital assistant suggest it may be equipped with multi-modal capabilities, meaning it can interact with the world around it via text, images and audio. It comes just one day after ChatGPT creator OpenAI unveiled its latest flagship AI, GPT-4o, that can see, hear and speak.

Google is not expected to make any major hardware announcements, though it could preview its next Pixel smartphone lineup, as well as tablets and smart home devices.

The keynote, which begins at 10am local time (6pm BST), could see the official launch of a brand new mobile operating system: Android 15. New versions of Android TV, Android Auto and its wearables operating system Wear OS may also be unveiled.

Google has previewed the event by claiming it will offer the chance to “discover how we’re furthering our mission to organise the world’s information and make it universally accessible and useful”.