Google teases Gemini-native Googlebook laptops for fall

Google previewed Googlebook, a new line of laptops that fuses ChromeOS and Android and is built to run Gemini AI. The company introduced the product at the Android Show and in a blog post by Alex Kuscher, Google’s senior director for laptops and tablets. Initial models will come from Acer, Asus, Dell, HP and Lenovo and are expected this fall.

Google said Googlebook is designed from the ground up for Gemini Intelligence so the AI can assist users immediately after a device opens. The machines combine Android apps from Google Play with Chrome’s browser and an operating experience the company says is created for Intelligence.

New interface features include Magic Pointer, which adds extra functions when the cursor hovers over apps, and a cursor “wiggle” that brings up quick, contextual suggestions based on pointer position.

Google demonstrated examples during the reveal. Hovering over a date in Gmail can prompt setting up a meeting. Selecting two images can generate a visualization; in the demo a couch was placed inside a room. Google also showed custom widgets and a remote mobile access feature that lets a user access their phone from the laptop.

Alex Kuscher wrote in the blog post:

We’re bringing together the best of Android, which comes with powerful apps on Google Play and a modern OS that’s designed for Intelligence, and ChromeOS, which comes with the world’s most popular browser. The result is Googlebook: a new category of laptops built with Gemini’s helpfulness at its core.

Google said it will provide more details about hardware, pricing and availability over the summer. The company’s brief announcement follows long-running reports that it was developing a successor to the Chromebook centered on Gemini and tighter integration between Android and ChromeOS. The reveal left open questions about how Googlebook will sit alongside the Chromebook brand.