I’m tired of pretending Galaxy AI matters

Galaxy AI is one of the more disappointing Samsung developments in recent years. The company’s not alone, as Google and Motorola also struggle to deliver AI features that enhance the user experience. There was a time I thought the AI craze would blow over; the marketplace is usually magic at doing its thing, and I figured AI would only get so many chances to underwhelm before buyers revolted.

Unfortunately, that’s not the case, and companies continue to push new AI features in the name of innovation. Galaxy AI recently received a slate of new functions and upgrades, but I’m still left with a bad taste in my mouth. Samsung keeps going back to the well, almost begging us to find ways to weave AI into our daily user experience, but that’s not how any of this works. I’ve bought into the AI promise for two years now, and I’m tired of pretending Galaxy AI matters.

I remember the Galaxy S25 series not being touted for its significant hardware upgrades, but for its software — specifically, Galaxy AI. I was initially taken in by Samsung’s promises, and it felt like AI was on the verge of fundamentally changing how we use our phones. Now Brief sounded like the generative AI assistant I had been waiting for. I looked forward to it breaking down my day, making helpful suggestions, and improving my overall quality of life.

Samsung also highlighted the multi-modal capabilities of Galaxy AI on the S25 series, thanks to the Snapdragon 8 Elite chipset. My phone could access multiple apps with a single query, so I could pull information from my calendar into an email without having to break it down into multiple steps.

It felt like AI was set to break out from the abstract and into a world where casual users would see some benefit. It all sounded fantastic. And if it worked as advertised, I was willing to forgive Samsung for the relatively lackluster hardware improvements. We grossly overestimate how much power our smartphones need, and if Samsung could provide a genuinely different experience, I wouldn’t need the other bells and whistles.

Unfortunately, it didn’t take long to realize that Galaxy AI was underbaked. Over a year later, I still can’t recall a single instance when Now Brief gave me anything that felt even remotely generative. Samsung has tried to make improvements, with updates that added parking spot reminders and traffic updates for upcoming meetings, but it’s a challenge to get them working correctly. The news stories Now Brief offers are random and depressing, and even the little missives it leaves in the Now Bar throughout the day feel oddly creepy.

The other Galaxy AI tools work well enough, but they are generic. Circle to Search and note summarization aren’t enough to move the needle in 2026. It’s fair to say that in its current form, Galaxy AI has failed to deliver the transformative experience I was expecting.

The real shame is that the rest of the company’s software has been fantastic. One UI 8.5 is running well, and Samsung has done an excellent job optimizing new software upgrades for older hardware. I feel the Now Bar is one of the company’s best additions in years. And unlike Galaxy AI, it actually makes a difference. I monitor sports scores, control media, and even see turn-by-turn directions on the Now Bar.

I’ve been disappointed up until now, but I’m not ready to give up hope just yet.

No company has done smartphone AI particularly well, but there is one whose roadmap I prefer to the rest: Google. The Pixel 10 series saw Google push AI to the background. Instead of me sitting there figuring out which prompt will make the phone do what I want, Google made it contextual.

Natural language photo editing is a fantastic feature. I don’t want to have to know which settings to adjust on which apps. I can just tell my Pixel 10 I’d like the photo a bit more vibrant, and it does the job. I no longer have to know which tools I need; I just have to know what I want. That’s the shift I’ve been wanting to see with AI, and at least Google is moving in that direction.

During the most recent Galaxy Unpacked, I felt shades of that coming from Samsung for the first time. The company even mentioned Galaxy AI more as a system-wide service rather than a tool I tap into occasionally. Magic Cue may need work on the Pixel phones, but it’s an excellent idea, so I’m glad to see Samsung trying its own version with Now Nudge.

I love the idea of getting contextual information popping up on the screen based on my conversations. I can set reminders, get addresses and phone numbers, or confirmation numbers from emails without being pulled away from what I’m doing. The future is bright for Now Nudge and Magic Cue, despite any initial growing pains.

A large part of me still wants to be done with AI on smartphones, but it’s hard to ignore the potential. We’ve at least moved beyond where I need a PhD in linguistics to phrase the prompt exactly right to get the output I desire. It used to be that it was always just faster to do it myself, without AI assistance. That’s starting to turn the corner.

I’m tired of pretending Galaxy AI matters and that it somehow adds value to my phone worth paying for, but with a few tweaks, that can change quickly.