The built-in search tool on Pixel devices used to quickly find local apps, emails, photos, and files without digging through the phone.
Google built Pixel Search to save users from digging through their phone to find an app, email, photo, and more, and it now appears to be pushing that idea a step further by trying to figure out what to do with the results it surfaces.
An APK teardown of Pixel Search version 1.0.983036833 by Android Authority has uncovered an unreleased feature called Gemini-powered suggestions. Strings inside the app describe it as a way to surface relevant information alongside Gemini-suggested actions meant to help users “finish a task faster.”
Google currently describes Pixel Search as a way to search across content on a phone, including information within apps, while also providing web results and AI Mode access in supported regions. Gemini-powered suggestions could add another step after a result appears.
The feature wasn’t functioning when it was discovered, so it remains unfinished, meaning it’s still unclear exactly what those suggested actions will include. The code only establishes that Google is experimenting with relevant information and actions built around completing tasks, though there are more clues elsewhere.
If this sounds familiar, Magic Cue does something similar already. Its Finish tasks faster feature can suggest opening an address in Maps, adding information to Wallet, sharing a relevant photo, or even opening Gemini to complete a restaurant reservation or book a ride. Google hasn’t said Pixel Search’s new feature is connected to Magic Cue, so no direct technical link can be drawn between the two.
The resemblance does suggest where Google’s Pixel software is heading: surfacing the information someone needs, then cutting down the number of taps required to actually act on it.
One part of this update is already rolling out. Pixel Search now includes a new Privacy & Permissions section with separate controls for aggregated usage data, call logs, and SMS history, though Digital Trends noted its own Pixel 11 Pro has yet to receive the update. The latter two toggles determine whether Pixel Search can use calling and messaging history to improve contact suggestions.
Turning those switches off doesn’t remove calls or messages from search results, so users who don’t want Pixel Search surfacing that content at all still need to revoke the corresponding app permissions separately. The Gemini feature, meanwhile, remains unfinished, and APK teardowns never guarantee that experimental code will actually ship. If Google does release it, Pixel Search stands to become noticeably more useful.
Google Pixel Watch 5 (45mm)
Robert Haba is the founder and editor-in-chief of Droid Tools. A lifelong gadget enthusiast with over a decade following the Android ecosystem, he built this publication to cut through the noise and give readers honest, real-world coverage of the tech they actually use.
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