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Google is reportedly working on an artificial intelligence (AI) feature for Gboard. As per a report, the new feature is dubbed SmartEdit and it is aimed as an enhancement for the voice typing feature in Gboard. The Mountain View-based tech giant’s keyboard app already allows users to edit or delete a portion of the text using voice commands; however, with SmartEdit, the app is said to let users make more complex edits. While the feature is currently under development, its evidence was spotted within the latest Android beta of Gboard.
The tech giant has been aggressively expanding AI capabilities across all of its products. According to an Android Authority report, the next in line to receive an AI upgrade is the keyboard app Gboard. The publication spotted evidence in the code of the Gboard for Android beta version 15.6.2. However, since it is an under-development feature, beta users cannot access it currently.
By Ropafadzo Mashawi
The latest beta version of the app reportedly mentions SmartEdit, which is likely the internal name for the AI feature. Google has reportedly enhanced voice typing so that users can make complex inline changes to the sentences. The publication has also shared screenshots of the new capabilities voice typing will get.
Based on the images, while voice typing on Gboard, users can ask the AI to rewrite a sentence to shorten it, add a word before another word, replace or remove a word, add capitalisation, and even change the spelling of a word. Currently, voice typing can only replace parts of or entire sentences or delete them while editing.
While the report did not mention it, the feature could be released alongside the upcoming Google Pixel 10 series. However, it is not known whether it would be a Pixel-exclusive feature or it would be available to all Android users. In case it is Pixel-exclusive, the feature might be powered by Gemini Nano.
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