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Google I/O 2025 could focus on AI and Android XR announcements, as the company has already taken the wraps off its Android 16 and Wear OS 6 updates.

Google I/O 2025 is set to kick off on Tuesday, and the company is expected to announce several new features at its annual developer conference. Technology enthusiasts and developers can look forward to learning about new features coming with the Android 16 update later this year, as well as new features powered by artificial intelligence (AI). Google and Samsung could also give us another look at the latter’s extended reality (XR) headset, which is expected to debut later this year.

Google I/O 2025: What to Expect From Google’s Upcoming Event

Last week, we got a good look at several new features and updates to the Android 16 user interface (UI) via “The Android Show” livestream. These new features are expected to roll out to users later this year with Android 16. With that out of the way, the company is now expected to focus its attention on unveiling upcoming updates to its AI, cloud and XR services at the upcoming event.

Google could announce new features coming to its Gemini AI chatbot on Tuesday. The company has recently added support for new features, including the ability to point a smartphone’s camera at various objects, or share their screen with the chatbot to receive responses. The company could also take the wraps off more powerful or efficient AI models at Google I/O.

Last year, Google showed off an advanced AI assistant that it referred to as Project Astra. While some of these features, such as the ability to “see” objects using a smartphone’s camera have made their way to Gemini AI, the company could unveil more advanced Project Astra features at its upcoming developer conference.

We might also see a tighter AI integration with the company’s products, including Google Search. AI Overviews and the recently introduced AI Mode are already accessible to users, so it will be interesting to see how the company plans to upgrade its search experience for web search and mobile app users.

A recent report from The Information indicates that an image search focused app is also in development at Google, and that the company could unveil it at the upcoming Google I/O event. This app is said to be similar to Pinterest, allowing users to save and curate images and pages they see online for easy access.

It’s worth noting that Google could also reveal additional features and functionality coming to Android 16, Wear OS 6, and Android TV 16 at the event — especially if they work with unannounced AI features. Similarly, we can expect to learn more about Google’s apps such as Chrome, Gmail, Google Maps, and other apps that could gain additional functionality with the integration of new AI features.

Microsoft Bing is offering 10 fast creations for free. Thereafter, free generations will cost 100 Microsoft reward points

Microsoft is adding a new artificial intelligence (AI) feature to its Bing mobile app. On Monday, the Redmond-based tech giant announced a new text-to-video generator tool dubbed Bing Video Creator, which is powered by OpenAI’s Sora. The company is offering the feature to all users for free, making it the first time that Sora’s video generation capability is available without cost. So far, OpenAI has only given access to the AI model to its paid subscribers. This feature is currently not available on desktop or within Copilot Search.

Microsoft Is Offering Sora’s Video Generation for Free

In a blog post, Microsoft announced that the Bing AI Video Creator tool is now available within the Bing mobile apps. The new AI feature follows the release of Copilot Search in Bing, which was added in April.

The Bing Video Creator can be found by tapping the menu button located on the bottom right of the app’s home screen. Within the “All apps” section, users will see the new Video Creator option. Tapping on the option opens a new page where users can type a prompt to describe the video. Once done, Sora will take over and generate the video.

There are two generation modes available — standard and fast. Microsoft is offering 10 fast generations to all users for free. After that, users will have to spend 100 Microsoft Reward points for every fast generation. Standard generation will remain entirely free. A TechCrunch report claims that even in the fast mode, videos can take hours to generate. Bing will send a notification once a user’s video has been generated.

Microsoft Bing AI videos are five-second-long and are available in 9:16 format. The company says the 16:9 format will soon be added, however, users cannot access any other aspect ratio. Additionally, users can queue up to three videos at a time. If all three slots are in use, users will have to wait till one of the videos has been generated.

OpenAI’s Sora was launched in December 2024, and ever since its launch has only been available to the paid subscribers of ChatGPT. Microsoft Bing is the first and only platform to offer this video generation capability to users for free.

HP offers AI Companion, myHP, and Poly Camera Pro, which are powered by AI capabilities.

As the second wave of AI PCs has hit the market, two things are immediately clear. One, the ecosystem players are looking at neural processing units (NPUs) as the next big thing in compute, and not just a gimmick. Second, original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) are still aiming to create a brand identity around AI PC.

The former observation is understandable given the massive rise of the artificial intelligence (AI) space in the last year. According to data from Precedence Research, the global AI market grew from $638.23 billion in 2023-24 to $757.58 billion in 2024-25, expanding at a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 18.72 percent.

The second observation, however, is more intriguing. Since AI PC is a relatively new space and OEMs lack expertise in software development, most have not found practical ways to offer tools that enables users to experience this technology. However, if a brand has to stand out in the AI PC space, it must find ways to offer unique AI-focused features that are not present in their competitors’ devices.

HP which recently released its OmniBook, EliteBook, and ProBook series, is focusing on this exact problem, and has a unique way to solve it. The company’s AI PCs are equipped with three different tools — the HP AI Companion, the myHP app, and the Poly Studio web camera. And for the last couple of weeks, I have been testing out these features to understand whether they add value to the lives of an average user or not.

The HP AI Companion

The California-based computer brand has added an AI-powered on-device chatbot in all of its AI PCs, dubbed HP AI Companion. It serves as a personal assistant, a document analysis tool, and a conversational way to control some of the device settings.

HP says the AI Companion is powered by a version of GPT-4 which operates entirely locally, meaning any data shared with the chatbot never leaves the device. It is powered by the on-device NPU, and is integrated with both the system as well as all the files stored on it.There are three interfaces to the AI Companion — Discover, Analyse, and Perform. Discover is for those who are new to AI chatbots and want to explore the technology. Here, users can ask the AI any general queries, as well as assign any generative tasks such as writing a blog or an essay. One thing to note here is that since the chatbot is not connected to the Internet, it might not be able to answer questions about real-time events. The Discover panel is also the place where HP provides a newsfeed of summarised topics users can use for inspiration.

Perhaps the most interesting feature of the HP AI Companion is the Analyse function. Users can upload any document or file, and the tool can quickly summarise the content. It can also access files stored in the user’s private Azure drive. In my brief usage, I was able to get it to summarise research papers and large documents accurately. It also adds citations so users can be redirected to the source in the document and get in-depth knowledge.

What makes Analyse stand out is that it offers the text summarisation capability directly on-device and for free. Users can also compare documents, highlight key points, and even filter specific data. Those who care about both frugality and data privacy, the combination is hard to find unless you own one of the expensive AI-enabled smartphones, such as the Samsung Galaxy S25 series.

Apart from this, the HP AI Companion also comes with the Perform interface, which is a conversational interface to access system settings. For instance, if you’re already working on AI Companion, and suddenly fight the display brightness to be inadequate, you can go to the Perform page and tell it to “increase brightness by 70 percent,” and it will. Some other settings users can control using the interface include Accessories, Audio, Camera, Display, and Gestures.

While the idea behind the myHP app is great, I feel that duplication of settings is not necessarily a requirement for most users. However, for those who want a handy one-stop shop for all their customisation controls, this could be a game-changer.

Poly Camera Pro

Finally, HP has also made some AI-based changes to its Poly Camera Pro app. It is the company’s in-house web camera app, which also connects to different video conferencing platforms such as Microsoft Teams and Google Meet.

In 2022, HP acquired Poly for $3.3 billion. In the following years, the company launched the Poly Camera Pro, a web camera app that offers multiple customisation features. Take the background control, for example. It offers several modes, such as portrait, spotlight, and green screen, which automatically track the subject to add the desired effect to the screen.

The framing tool also allows users to adjust the camera to various video streaming platforms, be it vertical or horizontal, all while ensuring that the subject is centred. There are also several built-in templates that users can add to avoid the generic on-camera/off-camera appearance. Templates can also be created to allow users to design the perfect video look for themselves.

In my brief experience with the Poly Camera Pro, I found the customisation options aplenty and useful. Since the customisations also appear on third-party video conferencing apps as well, it is a convenient way to ensure your appearance remains constant in all meetings.

If you are new to the idea of AI-powered personal computers, then HP’s AI PCs are a great starting point to understand what this technology can do for you. Since all of these AI-powered tools run locally on the device, you do not have to worry about data privacy issues, and can slowly accustom yourself with the AI assistant that can answer your basic queries, analyse and summarise your documents, help you customise your device to new heights, and allow you to look at your sharpest in every meeting.

And if you’re an experienced AI user, you can always explore GitHub and Hugging Face for your favourite open-source AI model and run them locally on your device with the built-in NPU.

WhatsApp is said to have rolled out the custom AI chatbots feature to some beta testers.

WhatsApp for Android is said to be testing a new artificial intelligence (AI) feature that will allow users to create custom AI chatbots. As per a feature tracker, Meta is rolling out the feature to select beta testers, and more users might get access to it over the next few weeks. The feature, which is already available on Instagram and Messenger, lets users describe the purpose, personality, and even appearance of a chatbot. Once created, the user can then have one-on-one conversations with the AI bot.

WhatsApp Might Let Users Create and Talk to AI Bots

According to WhatsApp feature tracker WABetaInfo, Meta is finally bringing its AI Studio-powered chatbot creation capability to WhatsApp. The new feature was spotted in the WhatsApp beta for Android 2.25.18.4 update, available via the Play Store. With this update, the instant messaging platform is said to have released the “Create an AI” feature to a select group of beta testers.

Based on an image of the feature shared by the feature tracker, it appears that the custom AI chatbot creation process is similar to the one on Instagram and Messenger. It is said to be available within a new AI Studio tab, which also contains pre-created chatbots users can talk to.

To create a custom AI chatbot, users will have to first write a prompt describing its role and purpose. Users can describe their chatbot in detail using up to 1,000 characters. Once done, they will have to select the personality traits of the AI. WhatsApp will suggest a few traits based on the description, however, users are also free to add their own traits. Similarly, users will also have to select the role the chatbot plays. Some of the examples of the role include helper, mentor, teacher, etc.

After this, users will get to choose an avatar for the chatbot. WhatsApp will suggest an avatar based on the information shared. However, users are free to edit the image or create a new one using text prompts. Once these steps are complete, the AI Studio will create a new custom AI chatbot that users can begin talking to.

Samsung Galaxy Ring was launched at the Galaxy Unpacked event in July 2024.

was speculated to unveil the Galaxy Ring successor at the Galaxy Unpacked event in January alongside its flagship Galaxy S25 series handsets but that did not happen. Now, a report indicates that the development of the smart ring has commenced, due to which it could be introduced at a later date than previously anticipated. Thus, the purported Samsung Galaxy Ring 2, equipped with enhanced health-tracking features, may not come out this year.

Samsung Galaxy Ring 2 Launch

Dutch publication GalaxyClub reports that the development of the purported Samsung Galaxy Ring 2 is still at an initial stage. This potentially means the smart ring may not be see a launch in 2025. It is speculated to arrive at the same time, or after the launch of the Galaxy S26 series, which is expected to take place at a Galaxy Unpacked event early next year.

The smart ring is reported to improve upon the existing models functionality by offering better usability, more accurate health and fitness tracking, and perhaps even some cosmetic changes to the overall design. However, major upgrades aren’t expected and the overall appearance may remain largely similar. This is attributed to the wearable compact form factor and the lack of “many upgradable parts”.

In terms of changes, Samsung could tweak the design to trim down the smart ring’s form factor, include a larger battery, or simply make it more energy efficient.

Previous reports suggest that the Samsung Galaxy Ring 2 will come with an improved battery that runs more than seven days on a single charge. It is said to onboard more accurate health data sensors and improved artificial intelligence (AI) functionalities. The smart ring is also tipped to have a slimmer design compared to the current model, which weighs 2.3g and is 7.0mm wide for the size five version.

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