Google seems to be testing a cleverer Gemini overlay that brings more of the assistant’s powers a tap away. Code discovered in a recent Google app build indicates a specific Tools button coming to the hovering Gemini interface, which permits opening image production, Veo video production, Deep Research, and Canvas without requiring you to leave your present software.
AssembleDebug, an independent Android analyst, discovered references to a unique tools badge in Google app v16.40.18. When adopted, the badge displays a Gemini add-on carousel; selecting one drops its badge into the input field, from which you can immediately say or type your order. It essentially mirrors the tools panel within the full Gemini app, but crucially, it exists on top of whatever you are doing—no necessity to switch apps.
A Tools button that shortens the trip to the tools
This is crucial because friction terminates adoption. Users’ interest has a real financial price due to context swapping: the State of Mobile from data.ai suggested that users spend almost five hours a day in mobile apps. This never-ending push on Gemini’s revenue can likely raise the number of developers using Gemini for limited assignments—creating a social graphic, making a report shorter, or making a Veo slice—and staying in their programming flow.
Circle to Select may arrive as an overlay tool
It is also likely to add a “Circle to Select” option in the overlay, which will be under Tools. The “Circle to Select” would allow the user to select part of the screen and send it to Gemini along with the usual prompt. The name speaks for itself, with the option being generated to create or analyze content directly in a conversation.
Picture circling a complicated chart in a PDF to ask for an explanation in plain language, or drawing a loop around a product page’s size guide to get the measurements and convert them to your region. As a shopper, for instance, you could circle a promo banner and say “What’s the catch?” to have Gemini read the fine print for boxes and launch dates. These are small but mightily powerful moments where precise context can dramatically change your outcome.
You will probably recognize Android’s usual confirmation flow when capturing the screen in this way, as getting a glimpse of the screen will require system-level permissions. On modern Android, screen capture is wrapped in a prompt dialog due to the MediaProjection API, the consent dialog, and an always-on indicator during recording or snapshotting. Thus, it can bring additional privacy protection, considering the nature of the overlay feature.
Image viewer controls move for easier one-handed use
Adding support for testing repositions the controls in Gemini’s image viewer. Share and Download are no longer in the top-right corner. The new layout moves them to the bottom and adds a dedicated Copy Image button. The ergonomic guidelines from Material Design are about bottom-of-screen reachability for one-handed use. For redundancy, Copy and Download are also surfaced in the three-dot menu for generated image responses, with the existing long-press actions for Save, Copy, and Share.
In aggregate, this means faster handoff to other software:
- Paste a generated sticker into a chat
- Drop an illustration into a slide
- Stash an image in your gallery with fewer taps
Why this matters and what to expect next
Convenience is frequently the gap between eager demo and everyday habit. If Gemini’s overlay gains a first-class Tools hub and context capabilities, such as Circle to Select, then it’s one less stage between idea and execution. For mobile workspaces, where workflows are short, interruptions are frequent, and thumb travel is sacred territory, that’s essential. It pushes Gemini more directly into competition with other cross-app assistants. Microsoft’s Copilot already leverages screenshot context on Windows, and Circle to Search’s user experience has proven that gesture-driven features can catch fire with mainstream users. Incorporating those concepts into Gemini’s overlay, the assistant could focus the app integration story across Pixels and more Android phones.
As is the case with any APK-surfaced feature, timelines are not set in stone. The code is currently found within version 16.40.18 of the Google app, though rollouts are typically limited based on server-side flags and staged via beta channels before making their way to the stable build. Features can change or never land. But the direction is clear: less menu hunting, more functionality exactly where your thumb already touches.
