According to engadget, Google is expanding Gemini AI features on Google TV at CES 2026, building on a demo from last year’s show. The new capabilities will let users edit photos stored in Google Photos by searching for specific people, remixing styles, or creating custom slideshows. Using Veo and Nano Banana models, Gemini can also generate entirely new media from scratch. Beyond photos, you’ll be able to adjust picture and sound settings with natural language, like saying “the screen is too dim.” The AI will also provide answers using a “visually rich framework” with high-res images and narrated, interactive overviews. These features will first arrive on TCL TVs running Google TV, before rolling out to other devices over the coming months.
The Big Screen AI Pivot
So Google‘s doubling down on putting AI on your TV. It’s a logical, if slightly awkward, next frontier. We’re used to barking commands at a phone or a smart speaker, but talking to your television still feels… performative. The photo stuff is interesting, though. I mean, who edits photos on their TV? Basically no one. But if you’re already using Google TV to show off your vacation pics, having Gemini whip up a themed slideshow or apply a cool filter with a voice command could be fun. It turns the TV from a passive display into a weirdly large, communal creative tool. But here’s the thing: is that a use case people actually want, or is it a solution in search of a problem?
Voice Control: The Real Game
For me, the sleeper feature is the natural language settings adjustment. Digging through nested TV menus for the perfect brightness or color temp is a universal pain. Telling your TV “the faces look too red” or “make the dark scenes brighter” and having it just work? That’s a genuine quality-of-life upgrade. It acknowledges that most people don’t think in technical specs like “gamma” or “local dimming zones.” They think in feelings and impressions. If Gemini can translate that effectively, it could finally make advanced TV calibration accessible to everyone. But the proof will be in the execution. Will it just crank the brightness slider to 100, or will it intelligently balance backlight, contrast, and gamma?
The Rollout Reality Check
Now, let’s talk timing. Google only just rolled out Gemini to its own streaming dongle, and now we’re hearing about a phased rollout starting with TCL TVs. “Over the coming months” is tech-speak for “don’t hold your breath.” This highlights the perennial Android TV/Google TV fragmentation problem. Your experience with this cool new AI will depend entirely on which box or TV you own and when its manufacturer decides to push the update. It creates a messy, tiered user base from day one. And remember, this is for a feature set that requires serious processing. I’m skeptical about how well the Veo media generation, for instance, will run on a budget TV’s underpowered chipset.
A More Helpful TV?
The expanded “visually rich” answers and “Dive deeper” narrated overviews are aiming for that “Hey, let’s learn about whales together!” family moment. It’s Google Search, but for your couch. In theory, it’s great. In practice, I wonder how often people will use it. The phone is still right there in your hand, and it’s a more private, personal information device. Using the TV for this feels like gathering around the family encyclopedia—a nice idea that might be slightly out of step with how we actually consume info now. Still, as a concept, it’s pushing the TV beyond just apps and into being a true central hub. Whether that hub needs generative AI photo editing, though, is still the big question.
