Search camera history is a new AI-powered feature available to Home app users. With the help of generative AI, you can search for specific events recorded by your cameras. Check events by asking questions like:
- Did the dog go outside today?
- Was the trash taken to the street yesterday?
- Did the USPS truck stop by yet today?
If you’ve opted in, Search camera history will search your camera’s event history and recorded data to give you a summary of what happened in or around your home.
Who can use Search camera history
Search camera history is currently rolling out to select Public Preview participants who have a Nest Aware Plus subscription. You also need to opt in to the terms of usage before you can use this feature.
Important:
- Search camera history is rolling out gradually and may not be available to you yet.
- This feature will only be available on Nest cameras set up in Google Home App and legacy cameras that have been migrated to the Home app.
This feature has limited language support. It is currently only available in the USA (English). This feature is not available in Illinois.
How to opt in for Search camera history
- Tap the Public Preview
icon.
- Activate the Experimental AI features
button.
Note: This button will be grayed out if you don't have a Nest Aware Plus subscription or the feature is not available yet for you. - On the Terms page, read and scroll down
tap Agree to give your consent. The Experimental AI features
button is now on.
tap Agree to give your consent. The Experimental AI features Another way to opt in is through in-app messages, like offers from your Home app Inbox or helpful interruptions. Just follow the on-screen steps after tapping Learn more.
Once you’ve opted in, all eligible experimental AI features will be available to you in the Home app. For a more detailed description of the opt in process, go to Public Preview for Google Home app.
How to opt out of experimental AI features
If for some reason you want to stop the use of experimental AI features, you may opt out and withdraw your consent.
- Tap the Public Preview
- Slide to turn off the Experimental AI features
- The Experimental AI features
Once opted out, you’ll need to review and agree to the terms again if you decide to opt in at a later time.
How to use Search camera history
Once you’ve joined Public Preview and opted in to the use of experimental AI features, a search box will be available on top of the Activity 
To start your search, tap the Search camera history box. Enter what you want to look for or use one of the suggested searches. The first time you use the search box, you’ll need to review and agree to the terms before using this feature.
If no events matched your search, try changing your search terms. If your search results don’t match what you were looking for, you can provide feedback in the app.
- 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.
- 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.
- Activity filters won’t affect your search results. If you have filters set up for a specific date range, your search will still get results from outside that range.
How to provide feedback
Search camera history is still in the early stages of development, so search results may vary at times. To help improve its accuracy and use of generative AI, participants are encouraged to provide immediate feedback.
- After the search results are displayed, a Feedback bar will ask “Are these results accurate?”
- Tap Thumbs up
or down
to confirm if the results are accurate or not. To dismiss the Feedback bar, tap
.
- If you tap Thumbs down
- Tap Submit once you’re done. Otherwise, tap Not now to close the sheet.
- If you tap Thumbs down