Key Takeaways
- A hidden flag in Android 15 QPR1 beta 2 hints at a Gemini button coming to the lock screen.
- It may provide faster access to Google’s AI chatbot in the future.
- Google’s focus on integrating Gemini into its apps and services suggests the button will likely be functional soon.
There are plenty of ways to access Gemini on your Android phone. After replacing Google Assistant with Google’s new AI-powered chatbot, you can trigger Gemini by long-pressing the power key, saying “Hey Google,” or swiping up from the bottom left or right corner of the display. As if that’s not enough, Google has also added a dedicated Gemini button inside Google Messages, Gmail, and its other apps. Now, the company is seemingly working on another way to provide you with quick access to Gemini — this time from your phone’s lock screen.
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How much more proof do we need?
Android guru Mishaal Rahman spotted a hidden flag in the latest Android 15 QPR1 Beta 2, presumably providing a way to access Gemini from the lock screen. The Android Authority report details that enabling the flag leads to a pill-shaped button with a Gemini icon showing up on the lock screen. It sits right below the fingerprint icon on Pixel phones.
Right now, tapping the button does not do anything. But in a future release of the OS, tapping the button might bring up Gemini. This is speculation, though, and Google eventually might decide against adding a Gemini button to Android’s lock screen. This seems unlikely, given the company’s push towards integrating Gemini into all its apps and services. Recently, Google even tried a questionable new tactic to promote Gemini in Google Messages.
A Gemini button on the lock screen will be handy
Currently, the only way to access Gemini through the lock screen is by saying the “Hey Google” hotword. Admittedly, this is not always a great option, especially when out and about. A dedicated Gemini button will provide faster access to the AI chatbot, which is what Google purportedly wants.
The company might make the Gemini button functional with the next Android 15 QPR1 beta release or wait until next year’s Android 16, which could focus on additional AI features.
Even if Google adds a Gemini button to Android’s lock screen, here’s hoping it also provides an option to turn it off.
Google has tested several lock screen-related changes in Android 15, with the QPR1 beta 2 introducing lock screen widgets on the Pixel Tablet. It was also spotted testing iPhone-like Live Activities for the lock screen through the At a Glance widget.
