Google Now was a feature of

Google Search Google Search (also known simply as Google or Google.com) is a search engine operated by Google. It allows users to search for information on the World Wide Web, Web by entering keywords or phrases. Google Search uses algorithms to analyze an ...

of the

Google Google LLC (, ) is an American multinational corporation and technology company focusing on online advertising, search engine technology, cloud computing, computer software, quantum computing, e-commerce, consumer electronics, and artificial ...

app for Android and iOS. Google Now proactively delivered information to users to predict (based on search habits and other factors) information they might need in the form of informational cards. Google Now branding is no longer used, but the functionality continues in the Google app and its discover tab. Google first included Google Now in Android 4.1 ("Jelly Bean"), which launched on July 9, 2012, and the Galaxy Nexus smartphone was first to support it. The service became available for iOS on April 29, 2013, without most of its features. In 2014, Google added Now cards to the notification center in ChromeOS and in the Chrome browser. Later, however, they removed the notification center entirely from Chrome. ''

Popular Science Popular science (also called pop-science or popsci) is an interpretation of science intended for a general audience. While science journalism focuses on recent scientific developments, popular science is more broad ranging. It may be written ...

'' named Google Now the "Innovation of the Year" for 2012. Since 2015, Google gradually phased out reference to "Google Now" in the Google app, largely removing the remaining use of "Now" in October 2016, including replacing ''Now cards'' with ''Feed''. At Google I/O 2016, Google showcased its new intelligent personal assistant Google Assistant, in some ways an evolution of Google Now. Unlike Google Now, however, Assistant can engage in a two-way dialogue with the user.

History

In late 2011, reports surfaced that Google was enhancing its product Google Voice Search for the next version of Android. It was originally codenamed "Majel" after Majel Barrett, the wife of

Gene Roddenberry Eugene Wesley Roddenberry Sr. (August 19, 1921 – October 24, 1991) was an American television screenwriter and producer who created the science fiction series and fictional universe ''Star Trek.'' Born in El Paso, Texas, Roddenberry grew up ...

and the voice of computer systems in the ''

Star Trek ''Star Trek'' is an American science fiction media franchise created by Gene Roddenberry, which began with the Star Trek: The Original Series, series of the same name and became a worldwide Popular culture, pop-culture Cultural influence of ...

'' franchise; it was also codenamed "assistant". On June 27, 2012, Google unveiled Google Now as part of the premier demonstration of Android 4.1 Jelly Bean at Google I/O 2012. On October 29, 2012, Google Now received an update through

Google Play Google Play, also known as the Google Play Store, Play Store, or sometimes the Android Store (and was formerly Android Market), is a digital distribution service operated and developed by Google. It serves as the official app store for certifie ...

bringing the addition of Gmail cards. Google Now displays cards with information pulled from the user's Gmail account, such as flight information, package tracking information, hotel reservations and restaurant reservations (as long as the Gmail account is not a

Google Workspace Google Workspace (formerly G Suite, formerly Google Apps) is a collection of cloud computing, Productivity software, productivity and Collaborative software, collaboration tools, software and products developed and marketed by Google. It con ...

account). Other additions were movies, concert, stock, and news cards based on the users' location and search history. Also included was the facility to create calendar events using voice input, for instance, "Make a new appointment for dinner with Steve next Thursday at 7 pm". On December 5, 2012, an update to the Google Search application brought several new features to Google Now, including cards for nearby events, searching by the camera when at a museum or shop, airplane boarding passes found from e-mail (

United Airlines United Airlines, Inc. is a Major airlines of the United States, major airline in the United States headquartered in Chicago, Chicago, Illinois that operates an extensive domestic and international route network across the United States and six ...

in the first instance, more airlines followed). In addition, Google Now would show cards for the weather for upcoming travel destinations, birthday reminders; and monthly summaries of biking and walking activities. New voice action features included with this update include the ability to post to

Google+ Google+ (sometimes written as Google Plus, stylized as G+ or g+) was a Social networking service, social network owned and operated by Google until it ceased operations in 2019. The network was launched on June 28, 2011, in an attempt to challe ...

, song recognition capabilities, and the ability to scan bar codes. However, when the Search 2.5 update hit, Google removed the "Search With Camera" feature. On March 21, 2013, the Executive Chairman of Google, Eric Schmidt, stated that Google had submitted an iOS version of Google Now to Apple for review and that the app was awaiting approval, but he later said that this was not true after Apple denied this was the case. Despite this, on April 29, 2013, Google Now was made available for iOS in an update to the operating system's Google Search application. Based on Google Chrome code review in December 2012, Google Now was expected to be integrated into the desktop version of Google Chrome. According to Seth Rosenblatt of CNET, it is rumored that Google Now will also serve as iGoogle's replacement in November 2013. On May 15, 2013, at Google I/O 2013, Google announced the upcoming release of Google Now on desktop platforms—the feature would be accessible only via Google Chrome or Google ChromeOS. On January 16, 2014, an alpha version of the Google Now was made available on desktop through the Google Chrome Canary release, although this app lacks some of the cards available on mobile version of Google Now such as public alerts, nearby photos, activity summary and stocks. On March 24, 2014, Google started rolling out Google Now for Google Chrome users who are signed into their Google account on the browser.

Functionality

Google Now was implemented as an aspect of the

application. It recognized repeated actions that a user performs on the device (common locations, repeated calendar appointments, search queries, etc.) to display more relevant information to the user in the form of "cards". The system leveraged the Google Knowledge Graph project, a system used to assemble more detailed search results by analyzing their meaning and connections. Specialized cards currently comprise: * Activity summary (walking/cycling) * Birthday * Boarding pass * Concerts * Currency * Developing story and breaking news * Events * Event reminders * Flights * Friends' birthdays * Hotels * Location reminders * Movies * Nearby attractions * Nearby events * Nearby photo spots * New albums/books/video games/TV episodes * News topic * Next appointment * Packages * Parking location * Places * Product listing * Public alerts * Public transit * Research topic * Restaurant reservations * Sports * Stocks * Time to home * Time reminders * Traffic and transit * Translation * Weather * Website update * What to watch In January 2015, Google introduced the ability for participating, installed third-party apps to generate cards; on launch, this included apps such as Airbnb,

EBay eBay Inc. ( , often stylized as ebay) is an American multinational e-commerce company based in San Jose, California, that allows users to buy or view items via retail sales through online marketplaces and websites in 190 markets worldwide. ...

, ''

The Guardian ''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in Manchester in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'' and changed its name in 1959, followed by a move to London. Along with its sister paper, ''The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardi ...

'', Pandora and

Lyft Lyft, Inc. is an American company offering ride-hailing services, motorized scooters, and bicycle-sharing systems in the United States and Canada. Lyft sets fares, which vary using a dynamic pricing model based on local supply and demand a ...

among others.

Now on Tap

On Android 6.0 "Marshmallow", Google Now supported an additional feature known as ''Now On Tap'', which lets a user perform searches within the context of information currently displayed in an app. When a user activates the feature, by holding the "Home" button, or using a voice command, the text content of the current screen is parsed for keywords and other information (names of people, television programs and films, etc.)—which then generate cards that display related information, suggestions, and actions. Users can also voice questions related to the subjects of these cards.

Reception

Scott Webster of CNET praised Google Now for its ability to remind users of events based on past location histories and check-ins, and further commended it for providing "information instantly in a clean, intuitive manner" without the user's requesting it. A review by Ryan Paul of

Ars Technica ''Ars Technica'' is a website covering news and opinions in technology, science, politics, and society, created by Ken Fisher and Jon Stokes in 1998. It publishes news, reviews, and guides on issues such as computer hardware and software, sci ...

claims that like most other voice activated apps, including

Siri Siri ( , backronym: Speech Interpretation and Recognition Interface) is a digital assistant purchased, developed, and popularized by Apple Inc., which is included in the iOS, iPadOS, watchOS, macOS, Apple TV, audioOS, and visionOS operating sys ...

, voice recognition is a major issue, but notes that the ability to type queries provides users with alternatives. Some commentators noted that Google Now's predictive power reveals "exactly how much data and information Google actually has about sers'routines and daily lives." An October 2014 review on Android Central showed Google Now outperforming its competition, Siri and Cortana.Simon Sage (October 8, 2014)
(King of search) Google Now voice search edges out Siri and Cortana in comparison
Android Central

References

{{Intelligent Personal Assistant Software Now Mobile software Mobile application launchers Natural language processing software Virtual assistants Internet properties established in 2012

History

Functionality

Now on Tap

Reception

See also

References