Samsung has officially unveiled its latest generation of foldables—the Galaxy Z Fold 7 and Galaxy Z Flip 7—and this year’s upgrades go far beyond the hardware. While these devices continue to push the boundaries of design and display innovation, the real headline feature in 2025 is their deep integration with Google’s Gemini AI.
Let’s break down what’s new—and what it means for the future of smartphones.
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Sleeker Hardware with Smarter Capabilities
Samsung continues to refine its foldable designs:
- Galaxy Z Fold 7 is now remarkably thin, nearly matching the profile of the Galaxy S25 Ultra when closed.
- Galaxy Z Flip 7 features a significantly larger 4.1-inch cover screen, offering improved usability without flipping open the device.
Yet, despite the impressive physical upgrades, it’s what’s going on under the hood—and who’s responsible for it—that truly redefines this generation.
Google’s Gemini AI Takes Center Stage
This year’s foldables aren’t just Samsung phones—they’re practically Google AI showcases.
During Samsung’s Unpacked keynote, Rick Osterloh, Google’s SVP of Devices and Services, joined the stage to emphasize the deep Gemini integration built into the new foldables.
Circle to Search Gets Smarter
One of the most popular AI features—Circle to Search—has been enhanced with Google AI Mode, improving its multimodal capabilities. This means users can now circle an image or text on screen and receive more nuanced, context-aware results, thanks to Gemini’s advanced vision-language understanding.
Introducing Gemini Live: Your On-Screen AI Assistant
Perhaps the biggest leap comes in the form of Gemini Live, a real-time assistant powered by Gemini that can interpret what’s on your screen—and respond accordingly.
What Can It Do?
Here are some practical applications:
- Smart Product Comparison: While browsing items, simply long-press the power button to summon Gemini. It will analyze the screen content and help you choose between products based on specs like material or user reviews.
- Poster to Calendar Event: Using computer vision, Gemini Live can identify event information from posters using the Fold 7’s camera and auto-generate calendar events.
- Lifestyle Assistance: Gemini can offer guidance for tasks like trimming your bangs or styling accessories, turning your phone into a smart mirror of sorts.
Gemini Is Now Inside Samsung’s Core Apps
Google isn’t stopping at on-screen AI assistance. It’s embedding Gemini into Samsung’s native apps, including:
- Calendar
- Reminders
- Samsung Notes
This level of cross-app integration suggests a shift beyond simple collaboration—Samsung’s foldables are evolving into Google-powered devices in every sense but name.
The Bigger Picture: A Win for Google?
While this partnership is clearly beneficial for Samsung’s users, Google may be the real winner here.
Despite Gemini’s advanced capabilities, the biggest hurdle for AI adoption in mobile has been visibility. With relatively low sales of Pixel devices, Google hasn’t had the scale to showcase Gemini’s potential. That changes with Samsung’s massive global user base.
AI, At a Cost
To further entice users, Google is offering a six-month free trial of its Gemini Advanced subscription (normally $20/month) for Galaxy Z Fold 7 owners. It’s a smart move to seed adoption—but whether people will pay for AI tools long-term remains to be seen.
Samsung Hardware, Google Intelligence
Samsung’s Z Fold 7 and Z Flip 7 are undeniably impressive feats of engineering. But this year, the real story is their AI-powered future, thanks to a strategic and deeply integrated partnership with Google.
These foldables aren’t just about folding screens anymore—they’re about folding intelligence into every corner of the user experience.Whether users embrace Gemini’s full suite of tools remains to be seen. But one thing’s clear: in 2025, Samsung may have built the phone, but Google is behind the wheel.
Frequently Asked Questions
Why does the title emphasize Google AI instead of Samsung?
Because the standout feature in this year’s Galaxy Z Fold 7 and Flip 7 is the deep integration with Google’s Gemini AI, not just hardware innovation. The title reflects that Google’s software is now central to the foldable experience, perhaps even more than Samsung’s own ecosystem.
What does “Let Google AI Take the Wheel” mean?
It’s a metaphor suggesting Samsung is handing over control—or at least the spotlight—to Google AI. Gemini is embedded in key user interactions like search, productivity, and even camera usage, showing Google’s AI is steering much of the experience.
Is this a collaboration or Google dominance over Samsung?
Technically, it’s a collaboration—but the article argues that Samsung’s foldables now feel almost like Google phones due to how central Gemini is. The title captures this power dynamic shift.
Why use a metaphor like “Here, You Drive” in the title?
It’s a catchy, conversational way to highlight the shift. It implies Samsung built the car (the hardware), but Google is now driving it (the intelligence behind the features).
Does this mean Samsung is becoming dependent on Google AI?
Not necessarily dependent, but it does show a stronger reliance on Google’s AI capabilities for software differentiation, especially in a competitive market where hardware is no longer the only selling point.
Is the title meant to be provocative or informative?
Both. It’s designed to spark curiosity (“Why is Samsung letting Google drive?”) while hinting at the central argument—that Google’s Gemini AI is now a dominant part of Samsung’s foldable phones.
Conclusion
Samsung’s latest foldables—the Galaxy Z Fold 7 and Z Flip 7—are more than just impressive hardware upgrades. They mark a significant evolution in how smartphones integrate artificial intelligence, with Google’s Gemini AI taking center stage. This partnership brings powerful, context-aware AI features directly to millions of users, transforming the foldable experience into something far more intelligent and interactive.
While Samsung continues to innovate with sleek designs and cutting-edge displays, it’s clear that Google’s AI is driving the future of these devices. For Google, the collaboration provides unprecedented reach to showcase its AI capabilities, while Samsung benefits from sophisticated software that elevates user experience.
