On September 15, 2026, Google released two new voice AI models — Gemini 3.8 Live and Gemini 3.8 Live Extended Thinking — and put them to work inside products many people already use for free: Search Live (the voice-and-camera mode in the Google app) and the Gemini Live assistant.
Where you'll actually meet it. Gemini 3.8 Live is the version now running Search Live — the feature you get to by tapping the "Live" icon under the search box in the Google app, then talking or pointing your camera at something instead of typing. The more powerful Extended Thinking version is going into the Gemini Live app for everyone, plus Gmail and Keep for anyone with a paid Google AI subscription, and Docs specifically for people on the pricier Google AI Pro or Ultra plans.
What's actually new when you talk to it. Two things stand out for everyday use. First, the model can recognize and switch between 97 languages in the middle of a single conversation — so if you start a question in English and slip into Czech, German, or Spanish partway through, it follows along instead of getting confused. Second, it can look at what your camera sees in close to real time and keep searching or working in the background while it keeps talking to you, instead of going quiet while it "thinks."
What Extended Thinking adds. For harder, multi-step questions — planning something with several steps, or comparing a few options — the Extended Thinking model can reason through the problem and talk at the same time, rather than pausing for a long silence before answering.
What it costs. Search Live's new voice model is free to anyone using the Google app, the same as before, and so is Extended Thinking inside the Gemini Live app itself. Getting it in Gmail and Keep needs any paid Google AI subscription; getting it in Docs needs the pricier Pro or Ultra tier specifically — if you already pay for one of those, there's nothing extra to turn on.
Worth knowing. Google is rolling this out gradually, as it usually does with new AI features, so it may take a little longer to reach some countries or languages than others — if the Live icon still behaves like before, that's likely why, not a sign anything is broken on your end. And as always, a genuinely new, talked-about AI feature is exactly the kind of thing scammers copy — download or update the Google app only through the Play Store or App Store, never through a link in an email or ad promising an "exclusive new Gemini voice."
If you're still finding your way around Gemini on your phone, our guide to Gemini on Android covers the basics, and AI Search vs Google helps you decide when voice search is the right tool versus typing a normal search.