Bixby was a virtual assistant developed by Samsung, which originally launched in 2017 with the Galaxy S8.
It offered features like live translations, restaurant recommendations and Bixby Vision for object scanning. Despite initial promise, Bixby struggled to compete with Google Assistant and Amazon Alexa, leading to its discontinuation in 2020.
Dominik Tomaszewski / Foundry
The good news are, however, is that Samsung is set to relaunch its voice assistant with advanced AI capabilities this year.
TM Roh, head of Samsung’s mobile division, confirmed to CNBC that the upgraded Bixby will use Samsung’s proprietary large language model (LLM) to improve user interactions using generative AI.
The company recently launched the Galaxy Z Fold 6 and Galaxy Z Flip 6, featuring new AI tools to enhance the user experience and encourage upgrades to premium models.
However, with no mention of Bixby at the latest Galaxy Unpacked event, we may see the new version debut alongside the Galaxy S25 series flagships early next year. No timeline has been confirmed at this stage, though.
Dominik Tomaszewski / Foundry
Reintroducing Bixby into a market dominated by Google Assistant, Amazon Alexa and Apple’s Siri is a bold move. The latter feels like the easiest target, but Apple recently announced its own AI upgrades for Siri.
However, Samsung aims to differentiate Bixby by creating a natural conversational interface that integrates seamlessly with its extensive product ecosystem.
The timeline for Bixby’s AI upgrade is not yet revealed. Whether Bixby will reclaim its place among top virtual assistants remains to be seen, but Samsung seems to be determined for it to make its mark.
Author: Artur Tomala, Mobile Writer, Tech Advisor
Artur is a Mobile Writer at Tech Advisor, where he covers a range of smartphone, tablet and smartwatch-related topics. He has been working in the tech industry since 2021, including time spent leading a team focused on mobile news, reviews and product rankings. As an ambassador for the productivity app Notion, he runs training workshops and creates advanced templates to help people stay organised and productive.