Google is looking to add AI replies to its Call Screening feature: Report

Contextual Call Screen replies are already part of the Google Phone app.

Google Pixel 9 Pro XL. (Image: Google)

Google is considering bringing “AI replies” to its call-screening feature that is available for Android 12 users.

According to a report by 9to5Google, a line of code in the official Google Phone app suggests that it will allow users to respond to a caller through “new AI-powered smart replies.”

It is important to note that Contextual Call Screen replies are already part of the app. With this feature, users don’t have to pick up the call themselves. Instead, they can let Google Assistant respond to the person on the other end of the line with a customised audio response.

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Google Call Screening is available on Pixel phones in Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Japan, Spain, UK, and US.

The Google Assistant will first ask who is calling and what they are calling about. If they are calling about an appointment, for instance, Google will show the user suggested responses specific to that call, such as ‘Confirm’ or ‘Cancel appointment’.

Now, it appears that Google is trying to build on the call-screening feature by using AI to suggest replies that are more appropriate to the nature of the call.

Last year, Google had said that it was working on making its call-screening feature more effective using a “multi-step, multi-turn conversational AI”. The AI replies feature could reportedly be powered by the tech giant’s Gemini Nano AI model.

A month ago, the company announced a new functionality that allows Gemini to handle phone calls and messages even if the phone is locked. It can reportedly respond even when the caller is silent.