Google's September Android Update Adds Guided Vision for Blind and Low-Vision Users
Google announced on September 1 that it is rolling out five new Android updates designed to make its phones more accessible and useful, including two accessibility-focused features: Guided Vision, built for blind and low-vision users, and Motion Assist, which targets motion sickness. The company detailed the features in a blog post announcing its September Android drop.
Guided Vision combines the phone's camera with Google's Gemini AI to help with everyday visual tasks such as reading small print on a food label, viewing a menu in a dark restaurant, or identifying objects around the house. The feature also provides voice guidance when the camera is not positioned correctly, telling users to move the phone, pan around, or center an object. Google says Guided Vision is coming to phones running Android 9 and newer in countries where Gemini is available.
Motion Assist is designed for people who experience motion sickness while using their phones in a moving vehicle. It adds a bubble overlay to the screen that moves in response to the vehicle's motion, helping reduce the disconnect between what users see on their screens and what their bodies feel. Users can set the feature to turn on automatically, add it to Quick Settings, and customize the bubble's shape, color, and transparency. Google says the feature is available to Android 17 users, following Apple's similar Vehicle Motion Cues introduced in 2024.
The remaining updates give Gemini a new way to help users remember where they put important items, with a "remembered items" section in the Find Hub that can store locations and attached photos, and add a Google Keep integration to Google Messages that lets people share and edit grocery lists and notes within a conversation. Google Messages is also gaining personalization options that let users customize individual chats with backgrounds, photos, and colors.
The feature drop continues Google's push to apply its Gemini AI to on-device assistance, with Guided Vision in particular positioning the assistant as a tool for accessibility. The features are rolling out through the September Android update, with availability varying by device and region.
TechCrunch reported the announcement on September 1, noting that some of the features see Google catching up to Apple, which already offers similar capabilities for iPhone users.