Krux
March 2, 2026
Samsung Lets You Pick Gemini or Perplexity Over Bixby
Published: March 2, 2026 at 6:07 PM
Updated: March 2, 2026 at 6:07 PM
100-word summary
Samsung's new Galaxy S26 phones let you choose Google Gemini or Perplexity as your default AI assistant, not just the company's own Bixby. The Galaxy AI update includes features that nudge you with proactive suggestions and pull together daily briefings without asking. Circle to Search now works inside photo editing tools, so you can find similar images while cropping. The shift matters because phone makers rarely let you swap out their built-in assistants for competitors. Samsung's betting that giving users choice will matter more than locking them into a single AI brand.
What happened
Samsung's new Galaxy S26 phones let you choose Google Gemini or Perplexity as your default AI assistant, not just the company's own Bixby. The Galaxy AI update includes features that nudge you with proactive suggestions and pull together daily briefings without asking. Circle to Search now works inside photo editing tools, so you can find similar images while cropping. The shift matters because phone makers rarely let you swap out their built-in assistants for competitors.
Why it matters
Samsung's betting that giving users choice will matter more than locking them into a single AI brand.