Google is hinting that it may bring back the Nest Hub line—all around Gemini. On a recent podcast appearance, Google’s Home leadership confirmed they continue to invest in smart displays and suggested that there is indeed a Gemini-powered screen somewhere on the roadmap, even if it’s not coming soon.
The message couldn’t be clearer: Google believes a stationary, always-on display is the right canvas for its multimodal AI. That would imply that a next-gen Nest Hub could be the product to bring voice, vision and touch together for the new Google Home age.
Clear signal from Google Home leadership on displays
On The Vergecast, Anish Kattukaran, the chief product officer for Google Home, said that the team is still “very committed to smart displays” and that though there’s nothing to announce at this time, news should be coming “soon.” On the heels of refreshed Nest speakers, new cameras and Gemini-led upgrades across Google’s ecosystem, the remarks sound more like a coordinated breadcrumb than an airy assurance.
Google hasn’t made a new standalone Nest Hub you can buy since the second-generation model, which added Soli radar for sleep tracking. The Pixel Tablet eventually functioned as a hybrid smart display in dock mode, but a dedicated device with Gemini would represent a transition from Assistant-era prompts to chat-like, context-aware transactions.
Why Gemini Makes for a Good Smart Display
Large language models shine when they have access to and can remember over time context, whether that be human speech, writing or something else.
Good smart displays offer all three: mic array for far-field voice pickup, capable speakers for natural conversation, and yes, a screen as well—and in the case of Echo Show and Nest Hub Max (formerly Google Home Hub), even a camera to enable features like home monitoring or presence-aware reactions. On Twitter, Kattukaran referred to this as an “ultimate form factor for the home,” and it’s hard to argue against that case.
Wouldn’t it be nice to walk into the kitchen, call out for a dinner idea—Gemini could check contents of a connected fridge, offer recipe ideas, show step-by-step guidance and control appliances with Matter and Thread.
Ask one follow-up, then another, and the assistant writes them out in series, chaining tasks without the walls of downtime. Google has already teased that there will be improvements to more natural conversations and multiple voices for Gemini; on a display, those gains become concrete when coupled with glanceable cards, camera feeds and home controls.
What a Gemini Nest Hub Might Offer to Users
A next-gen Nest Hub would probably focus on on-device performance and privacy, with a local NPU for faster offline intent handling even as it leverages the cloud to power heavy multimodal reasoning. Well, expect deep hooks into Nest Cams and Doorbell—instantaneous clip summaries, face-aware chimes, cross-device handoff to your phone or TV via Cast.
Google can also resurrect Soli for proximity gestures or low-power sensing, so you can do things like have quick controls from a wave or more nuanced routines that react to presence without voice. And if integrated with new Matter updates (which expand what types of devices and scene orchestration can be controlled via these routines), natural-language routines could become even more powerful: “set movie night” might dim your lights, lock your doors, arm the security system, and boot up the streaming app—all from one conversational command.
Competitive Pressure And User Expectations
Competitors are racing to enable smart displays that are truly conversational. Amazon has previewed a flashier, generative Alexa that operates on its Echo Show devices, and Apple experimenting with display-first home hardware. What sets Google apart is just how far Gemini reaches: Search, YouTube, Photos, Calendar, Maps—and a growing roster of third-party services for which Gemini can summarize or plan around or take action on.
Researchers at companies like Canalys and IDC have noticed that devices with screens tend to see more engagement than do voice-only speakers, as the visual feedback helps speed up task completion and discovery. If Google connects that dynamism with Gemini’s multi-step reasoning, it can not only get beyond sets of timers and music but head on toward daily planning, security advice, energy consciousness or familial coordination.
The subscription question for a future Nest Hub
One unresolved piece is cost. Google’s natural, back-and-forth assistant experience (Gemini Live) has largely been offered as a paid play on speakers—often tied to AI subscription tiers. If the new Nest Hub builds on those capabilities, Google will have to be explicit about what’s freely available versus subscriber-only so that the basic experience doesn’t feel walled off.
A sane model would simply hold onto home control, routines, and general requests for everyone while restricting advanced multimodal reasoning, real-time translation, and deep content summarization to folks who pay. Clear tiers and household sharing are going to be important for multi-user homes.
Reading the roadmap for Gemini in Google Home
Google’s public statements indicate intent but suggest no imminent launch. Keep an eye out for the clues: Nest-branded filings of new devices, mentions of Gemini-enabled features in beta builds of the Google Home app, and Fuchsia or Android firmware files hinting at display-centric functions. As Gemini is further integrated with Home, Assistant-era command syntax will hopefully recede in favor of conversational follow-ups and proactive context-aware nudges.
For now, the lesson is obvious. Google thinks a smart display is the perfect place for Gemini, and it’s getting the ecosystem ready to back that. When the next Nest Hub arrives, look for it to be even less like a screen displaying widgets but more like a home-based AI that can see, talk and act—without you having to worry about remembering how to write sentences.
