Public Preview for Google Home app

Public Preview participants can now share their homes and devices in more ways. With the new access levels, you can invite someone based on the permissions you want to give them.

For trusted partners or persons who co-manage the home with you, give Admin access. To give someone limited permission to control your devices and change some settings, add them as a Member. A Member can have either a Settings or an Activity access level.

Learn more about the new access levels and how to invite people to your home with the Google Home app.

With the Google Home extension, you can control your smart home devices with your Gemini mobile app.

For example, you can write or say:

• “Turn on/off all of the lights.”
• “Help me clean up the kitchen.” (to start vacuum)
• “Turn the thermostat to heat-cool mode.”

For now, the Google Home extension is available on Android and works with prompts in English only. It can’t perform some actions on security devices, like gates, cameras, locks, doors, and garage doors.

Learn how to set up and use the Google Home extension.

The script editor is currently available in Public Preview on Google Home for web and in the Google Home mobile app. With the script editor, you can create and edit your own scripted automations using additional starters, conditions, actions, and logic. You'll also be able to use presence sensing to create more custom automations than are currently available with Home & Away Routines. You can access the script editor on Google Home for web now at home.google.com/automations.

The Favorites widget is a customizable widget that allows you to quickly access compatible smart home devices from your Home screen. It is currently available in Public Preview for iOS devices.

Learn how to use the Favorites widget.

Nest Cam IQ Indoor, Nest Cam IQ Outdoor, Nest Cam Indoor, Nest Cam Outdoor, and Nest Doorbell (wired, 1st gen), formerly known as Nest Hello owners can add their cameras to the Home app. If you're eligible, the app will let you know. Learn more about device migration.

Note: You can also transfer your Nest Hub Max's camera to the Google Home app. Refer to Manage your Nest Hub Max cameras with the Google Home app for more details.

You can monitor compatible Works with Google Home camera live streams in the Google Home app. This feature is still under development and isn't available for all cameras. To try this out with an eligible camera:

Link a camera

1. Open the Google Home app .
2. Tap Devices Add Works with Google Home .
3. Choose your camera manufacturer from the list and link your account to finish setup.

Check live stream

1. Open the Google Home app .
2.  Tap Favorites or Devices   the camera you want to monitor.

This feature requires a Nest Aware Plus subscription.

Search camera history uses Generative AI to help you find specific camera events by asking questions. For example, you can ask questions like:

• Did my dog go outside today?
• Was the trash taken to the street yesterday?
• Did the USPS truck stop by yet today?

To help in feature improvements, you can provide thumbs up or down feedback on results. Written text can be entered with thumbs down responses to help explain your feedback.

For more information about this feature, go to Search camera history for the Google Home app.

This feature requires a Nest Aware Plus subscription.

AI descriptions use Generative AI to describe what’s going on in a recorded event. A name or a short description of the event is generated in the Activity Tab and the Camera view. This information is then used when searching your camera history.

Rate the results with thumbs up or down to help improve the feature. Written text can be entered with thumbs down responses to explain your feedback.

For more information about this feature, go to AI descriptions for camera events in the Google Home app.

This feature requires a Nest Aware Plus subscription.

Help me create uses Gemini to create custom automations for your home. You can describe the behaviors you want in natural language, and the feature will generate an automation. For example, you could say, "At sunset every day, turn on the living room lights and lock the front door." The feature then generates an automation that you can save or customize.

This feature has limited language support. It’s currently only available in the US (English).

Help me create is still in development and may not work as expected in all cases. Always verify that any automations or settings created are working correctly. Additionally, not all behaviors may be supported at this time, but more support is added regularly. For more information about this feature, go to Generate Google Home automations with Help me create.

We’re experimenting with using Gemini models to update the Google Assistant’s ability to give you smarter and more helpful responses on your Nest speakers. This makes it more natural and helpful for everyone in your home to quickly get access to useful information throughout the day. When a chime plays before Google Assistant answers, it means the response uses Gemini technology.

We also added a selection of more natural sounding voices. A new voice is selected for you initially, but you can change it at any time through the Assistant settings in the Google Home app.

This feature is currently available on Nest Mini (2nd gen) and Nest Audio.

For more information about this feature, refer to Get improved answers in Google Assistant with help from Gemini.

• Camera or doorbell migration from the Nest app to the Home app might freeze or fail. If you can't complete device migration after a second try, please Contact Us for assistance.
• When the Owner of a Nest App home migrates a camera to the Home app, other home members lose full access to the camera in the Nest App. To access the camera controller in the Home app, other home members must join Public Preview. Learn more about device migration.

• When a single person is detected during a camera event, the AI caption and description might include their name if they're in your familiar face library. However, when multiple people are detected, the caption and description won't include their names.
• If you search your camera events for someone in your familiar face library, the results include any event when their face was detected, even if other people were there.
• Help me create is expanding its capabilities. Not all devices, behaviors, and functionalities are supported at launch, but we're actively working to add more options. To find out what's currently supported, check Supported behaviors and Known issues for Help me create.