Galaxy AI is Samsung's umbrella name for the AI features built into its Galaxy phones, tablets and watches, debuting on the S24 in 2024 and now most complete on the Galaxy S26, with deeper Gemini integration and new features older models lack. Here is every feature that matters, how each works, and which need a Samsung account.
Circle to Search: The One Everyone Actually Uses
Press and hold the home button or nav bar on anything on screen, circle or tap what you want to know about, and Google searches it instantly without leaving the app. Circle a shoe in a video, a restaurant name in a photo, or a plant, and you get an answer. It works across text, objects, images and video frames.
The visual recognition runs locally on the Snapdragon 8 Elite's AI hardware, while the actual search results come from Google's servers. Available on Galaxy S24 and later, including all S26 models.
Live Translate and Interpreter:
Live Translate translates phone calls in real time between two languages, with both speakers hearing their own language and text appearing on screen, supporting 20-plus languages with voice output. It runs on-device via Gemini Nano, so call audio never leaves your phone, a real privacy win given how sensitive call content is.
Interpreter does the same for in-person conversations: place the phone between two people, pick the languages, and both sides of the screen show the live translation. It supports 13-plus languages and splits the work between on-device voice recognition and cloud translation, so it performs better with a strong connection.
Chat Assist: Writing Help in Every App:
Chat Assist sits in the Samsung keyboard, offering tone adjustment, translation, grammar fixes and reply suggestions in any app. Its tone options (professional, social, educational, concise, beyond just formal or casual) are more granular than Apple's Writing Tools.
The tradeoff is privacy: Chat Assist uses cloud-based Gemini, so your text is sent to Google's servers, unlike Apple's on-device approach.
Generative Edit and Note Assist:
The Gallery's Generative Edit tools include Object Eraser (removes items, works best on simple backgrounds), Generative Fill (expands a photo's frame with AI-generated surroundings), Remaster (sharpens old or low-quality photos) and watermark removal (reliable on text, less so on logos). Most of this processes in the cloud, and Samsung says uploaded images are not retained afterward.
In Samsung Notes, Note Assist auto-formats messy notes into headers and bullets, summarizes long notes, and can draft a cover letter from rough bullet points. Transcript Assist pairs with Voice Recorder to transcribe and organize audio, with accuracy dropping in noisy rooms or with overlapping speakers.
Galaxy AI and the Galaxy Ring
On the S26, Samsung Health's Energy Score blends phone activity, Galaxy Ring sleep data and heart rate into one daily readiness number, similar to Oura's Readiness Score, and the AI coaching adjusts your day's activity targets if the ring detected poor sleep, rather than applying a fixed formula. This only works with a Galaxy Ring on the same Samsung account.
Which Features Are Free?
Feature | Free | Needs Samsung account |
|---|---|---|
Circle to Search | Yes | No |
Live Translate | Yes | Yes |
Chat Assist | Yes | Yes |
Generative Edit | Yes | Yes |
Note Assist | Yes | Yes |
Interpreter | Yes | Yes |
Health AI coaching | Yes | Yes |
Samsung has kept the core Galaxy AI features free on qualifying devices since 2024, and that commitment continues into 2026, though some advanced generative features carry usage limits on older hardware.
Galaxy AI vs Apple Intelligence:
Category | Galaxy AI | Apple Intelligence |
|---|---|---|
Call translation | Strong, 20+ languages | Limited |
Writing tools | More tone options | On-device, system-wide |
Photo AI editing | Strong, cloud-based | Strong, on-device |
Privacy model | Mixed on-device/cloud | Mostly on-device |
Visual search | Circle to Search | Visual Intelligence |
Cost | Free core features | Free |
Conclusion:
Galaxy AI's real strength is breadth: real-time call translation, in-person interpretation, and health coaching tied to the Galaxy Ring go further than Apple's equivalents. Its tradeoff is privacy architecture, more of Galaxy AI runs in the cloud, where Apple leans on-device by default.
If translation and note-taking matter most, Galaxy AI wins on capability. If on-device privacy is the priority, know which features you are trading it away for.
(FAQs):
Q1: Which Samsung phones have Galaxy AI?
A: Galaxy S24 and later, Z Fold 6 and Flip 6 and later, Tab S10 and later, and select 2025-onward Galaxy A phones. Older devices lack the full feature set due to hardware limits.
Q2: Does Galaxy AI work without a Samsung account?
A: Only Circle to Search and Browsing Assist do. Everything else, Live Translate, Chat Assist, Note Assist, Generative Edit, needs a Samsung account signed in.
Q3: Does Live Translate store my calls?
A: Voice recognition runs on-device via Gemini Nano, so raw call audio never leaves your phone. The translation step may use the cloud, but Samsung says conversation content is not retained afterward.
Q4: Is Galaxy AI free?
A: Yes, the core features remain free on qualifying devices. Some advanced generative tools carry usage limits, but no standard Galaxy AI feature currently requires a subscription.
Galaxy AI updates through One UI software updates. Feature availability varies by device and region, and this reflects capabilities as of 2026.