Google Assistant on Chromebook is coming next week to 15 countries first

We have been waiting for nearly a year now for Google Assistant to come to Chromebooks. It should be arriving in the coming week alongside Chrome OS 77 update. There are caveats, though. One is it'll be available in 15 countries. Another is that G Suite accounts won't have access to the feature yet. Developers are working on the best way for enterprise users to control access to Google Assistant.

As we mentioned, there are a limited number of countries the feature will roll out initially. There's also a limitation which chosen languages it'll be available in. For Canada, English and French will be supported. The other countries getting support for Google Assistant include Australia, Denmark, El Salvador, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, Mexico, Netherlands (Dutch), New Zealand, Norway (Nynorsk & Bokmål), Spain, the United Kingdom, and the United States.

Source: 9to5Google

Google Assistant can make WhatsApp calls on Android

Whether you want to make a video or audio call on WhatsApp, Android users can ask Google Assistant to make the call for them. Google's virtual assistant interfaces with different third-party messaging services, so this addition doesn't come as a surprise. The caveat is that it only works through Android, for now. We presume the feature could make its way to other Google Assistant-supported devices, but for now, you need to have an Android smartphone. All you need to say to have Assistant make the call is "Hey Google, WhatsApp video [insert name of contact]."

Source: 9to5Google

Google makes it easier for Pixel owners to change Assistant's settings

You used to have to dig through your Google Account settings to get access to the settings for Assistant. But that's about to change. The latest beta version of the Google app (version 10.53.3) will make it easier to access Assistant's settings. Open Settings in the app and go to Apps & notifications. There are toggles for pulling up Google Assistant (either by a Hey Google call-out or through squeezing the sides of the phone). Below that is a one-tap link to all Assistant options in the Google Account settings. If you're a Pixel user, expect this to head your way soon.

Source: Android Police

Google Assistant on mobile gets new silent-response option

You will soon have the option to have a less chatty Google Assistant on your phone. Google just updated its support site that shows how you can turn off Assistant speech output on your phone. But since the support site was only recently updated, it isn't immediately available. You're going to have to keep checking back to see if the feature comes to you.

To turn off speech output, you need to open Assistant and tap the explore icon. Open the settings, go to the Assistant tab, and tap Phone. Under Voice and speech, there will be an option to change speech output to Hands-free only. Once you've enabled this feature, Assistant will still do what you say, but it won't speak out loud to tell you what it's doing. You will still be able to read the responses on the screen.

Source: Android Police