ChatGPT aims to replace Google Assistant as the default app on Android smartphones

Several Android users must not like the presence of Google Assistant on their mobile devices. Apparently, Google’s voice assistant is losing ground to OpenAI’s ChatGPT, one of its main competitors in the premium phone market. As per Mishaal Rahman of Android Authority, the ChatGPT app is developing a system-wide overlay user interface in addition to supporting Android’s voice assistant APIs. Users might designate the ChatGPT app as the system-wide assistant app, enabling it to appear anywhere on Android and answer user inquiries, should the firm implement this functionality.

In September, ChatGPT, which had previously only supported text input, added the ability to accept voice and picture input. The same source of Android authority claims that OpenAI is developing an Android app for ChatGPT that would let users select it as their default assistant app. Certain sections of the program and continuously, no matter where you are, all credit to the robust assistant APIs. Having the assistant app set as the default allows users to open it with a gesture or the power button, and it can read text and photos on the screen to be processed.

Nevertheless, it appears like OpenAI plans to use the app for this purpose, given that the previously stated XML file even exists. Rahman discovered that as of this month, chat GPT version 1.2023.352 included a new activity called “com.openai.voice.assistant.AssistantActivity.” This is the standard semi-transparent spinning orb user interface used by voice assistants; however, Rahman was unable to get it to respond to voice commands at this time. However, firms often release feature-complete products even if they are still in development and half-broken, so it is possible that this semi-transparent spinning orb user interface may never see a final release.

Updates to the app include the addition of an assistant_interaction_service XML file, which defines the sessionService and recognitionService via a voice-interaction-service tag. Also, the service’s support for Assist is declared by the tag. In order for an app to function as the “default digital assistant app, it must have certain declarations. However, the ChatGPT app does not yet have the necessary declarations in its manifest that tell the system which “service” to bind to. As per some code in the update, the software will function as a digital assistant app even if the necessary functionality isn’t available yet. For Android users, this means that ChatGPT will become their default virtual assistant as soon as the update is published.

With the latest version revealing a planned Quick Settings tile for convenient access, OpenAI is committed to closing the gap. But users might need a ChatGPT Plus membership in order to use ChatGPT on Android in place of Google Assistant.