Samsung's Galaxy S24 lineup puts generative AI front and center

Samsung unveiled its Galaxy S24 devices at its first Unpacked of the year. As expected, the three smartphones have a heavy focus on artificial intelligence-powered features, from the likes of live translations to image editing.

Galaxy AI, as Samsung is calling the devices’ overarching AI system, is behind a number of communication-focused functions. For one thing, Galaxy S24 devices will natively support live, two-way translations on phone calls without the need for a third-party app, Samsung says. Since processing for most AI features is handled on-device with the help of the Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 Chipset and its neural processing unit, the conversations will stay private (well, aside from eavesdroppers who might catch one half of the chat). You'll have the option to entirely disable online processing of data for any AI features.

On a similar note, on-device processing also means that you won’t need cellular data or Wi-Fi connections to use AI features such as Interpreter. This enables you to display split-screen translations of an in-person conversation. Your device will also be able to generate transcripts of recordings — these can be summarized or translated as needed.

When it comes to dashing off text-based messages, Samsung says its Chat Assist feature can help you find the right tone. Samsung Keyboard can translate messages between 13 languages too. A Note Assist function in Samsung Notes can summarize texts, generate templates and create covers to help you identify the note you’re looking for.

Meanwhile, as you’re driving, Android Auto can summarize incoming messages and suggest relevant responses and actions for you to approve via voice command. These could include things like telling someone your estimated time of arrival.

A new search experience means that you'll be able to draw a circle around something on your screen and see related results from Google. Depending on your location and the search query, you may see an AI-generated overview that pulls information from the web to offer context and more details.

AI will be a driving force behind the Galaxy S24 lineup's camera systems too. Samsung suggests it will help with digital zoom, image stabilization and when capturing photos and videos in low-light. A Super HDR feature is designed to help you see a lifelike preview of an image before pressing the shutter button.

When it comes to image editing, the suite of AI tools might come in useful. Galaxy AI will offer suggested tweaks to improve a photo, while the Generative Edit function can fill in parts of an image's background. This may prove handy if a shot is crooked and you want to straighten it, as the feature should let you move the subject and fix the background. Of note, you will need a network connection to use Generative Fill. Also, whenever you use generative AI to modify a photo, your phone will apply a watermark to the image and its metadata.

If you want to slow down a video that has a lot of activity, the Instant Slow-mo feature might help out. Samsung says this can generate extra frames based on movements in the original video to slow down the action smoothly. Last but not least, the camera systems in certain Galaxy S models feature HDR integration with third-party social apps. This means that when you look up an image in Gallery or your Instagram feed or reels, you'll see photos and videos in Super HDR.

It's little surprise that Samsung is going all in on AI with its latest Galaxy phones. The company previewed its AI models at the tail end of 2023, and word at the time suggested Samsung would deploy those functions broadly in the following months. Moreover, Samsung needs to keep pace with Google, which has been focusing more on AI features on Pixel phones for the last few years. Recent Pixel models are able to handle AI processing on-device too.