What Samsung’s Galaxy AI Isn’t Telling You

Samsung's Galaxy AI is no longer just a futuristic concept. As of late 2025, it has become the standard for mobile intelligence. Launched alongside the S24 series, it has now expanded to over 400 million devices, including the latest S25 series, Galaxy Z Fold7, and the Galaxy Ring. This guide breaks down how the hybrid AI ecosystem works, what is new in the One UI 7/8 updates, and the critical changes coming to Galaxy AI pricing as we head into 2026.

What is Galaxy AI?

Galaxy AI is a “hybrid” intelligence suite developed in collaboration with Google and Qualcomm. Unlike traditional assistants that follow rigid commands, Galaxy AI uses a neural processing unit (NPU), most notably the Snapdragon 8 Elite for Galaxy, to learn from your patterns and offer proactive solutions.

The hybrid advantage

On-device processing: Tasks like Live Translate and Audio Eraser happen locally. This ensures near-instant response times and keeps your most sensitive data off remote servers.

Cloud-based intelligence: For complex tasks like Generative Edit or long-form Note Summaries, the system utilizes the Samsung Cloud Platform (powered by Google Gemini) to provide high-level computing power. This is a core part of Samsung’s hybrid AI for enterprise transformation, blending privacy with performance.

Core features: Communication, creativity, and productivity

1. Borderless communication

• Live Translate & Interpreter: Real-time voice and text translation for calls and face-to-face conversations now support over 30 languages.
• Writing Assist Everywhere: With the latest One UI updates, you no longer need the Samsung Keyboard to use AI. Writing Assist now integrates into third-party apps like WhatsApp and Instagram to help you adjust tone or fix grammar on the fly.

2. Pro-level creativity

• Generative Edit (Photo Assist): Effortlessly move, resize, or delete objects in photos. In 2025, the “Sketch to Image” feature allows you to draw a rough doodle on a photo and have the AI turn it into a realistic object.
• Audio Eraser: Specifically designed for video, this tool isolates specific sounds (like wind or background chatter) and removes them without affecting the primary audio track.

3. Smart productivity

• Circle to Search (with Music Detection): Beyond just circling images, you can now press and hold the home button to identify a song playing in the room or on your device. No app switching is required.
• Note & Transcript Assist: Record a meeting, and the AI will provide a speaker-labeled transcript and a bulleted summary. One UI 7 now allows these summaries to be automatically formatted into professional-looking emails.

New for 2025: Galaxy Health AI and the “Now” experience

The 2025 update brought a shift toward proactive AI—features that help you before you even ask.

• Now Brief & Now Bar: Replacing traditional widgets, the Now Brief provides an AI-generated morning summary of your weather, calendar, and “Energy Score.”
• Energy Score: Using data from the Galaxy Ring or Watch Ultra, Galaxy AI analyzes your sleep, heart rate, and activity to give you a daily score of your physical readiness.
• AI Sleep Coaching: The AI now detects signs of sleep apnea and provides personalized “Booster Cards” to improve your recovery.

These advancements reflect broader AI and cloud integration strategies aimed at enhancing user wellness and productivity.

Device compatibility and the 2026 “paywall”

The subscription reality

Samsung's initial promise of “free until the end of 2025” is reaching its deadline. While Samsung has signaled that on-device features (like Live Translate and Audio Eraser) will likely remain free, advanced cloud-based features (like Generative Edit and Google Gemini–powered tools) may transition to a subscription model or be bundled with “Samsung Care+” or “Google One” plans starting in 2026.

Device compatibility table

Privacy: You are in control

Samsung remains a leader in AI privacy through the Advanced Intelligence settings.

Pro Tip: To ensure your data never leaves your phone, go to Settings > Advanced Features > Advanced Intelligence and toggle on “Process Data Only on Device.” Turning this on will disable some cloud-heavy features (like Generative Edit), but it ensures your photos and voice recordings are never uploaded to the cloud.

Is Galaxy AI a game-changer?

In 2025, Galaxy AI has transitioned from a collection of “cool tricks” to a necessary toolkit for the modern professional. While the potential for future subscription fees is a valid concern, the sheer time savings provided by tools like Note Assist and Circle to Search make it the most comprehensive AI suite on the market. It surpasses Apple Intelligence in terms of creative flexibility and Google’s own Pixel in terms of hardware and software integration.

With continued growth in generative AI enterprise use cases, Samsung Galaxy AI for Business is also gaining traction, especially in sectors looking for scalable AI infrastructure and seamless on-device AI versus cloud AI workflows.

Frequently asked questions: Galaxy AI in 2026

Q1: Is Galaxy AI still free after December 31, 2025?
A: Yes, but with a distinction. Samsung has confirmed that “default” on-device features, such as Live Translate, Note Assist, and Audio Eraser, will remain free indefinitely. However, premium cloud-based features or those integrated with Google Gemini Advanced (like high-level generative editing or real-time multimodal reasoning) may require a paid subscription or a Google One AI Premium plan starting in 2026.

Q2: Which Samsung devices support the full Galaxy AI suite?
A: The full experience, including 2025’s new Energy Score and Now Brief, is available on the Galaxy S25 series, S24 series, Z Fold7/Flip7, and Z Fold6/Flip6. Older flagships like the S23 and S22 series support a limited version of Galaxy AI, omitting hardware-heavy features like Instant Slow-Mo or Sketch to Image.

Q3: Does Galaxy AI work without an internet connection?
A: Many core features work offline if you enable “On-Device Processing” in settings. This includes Live Translate, Chat Assist (grammar only), and Interpreter. However, features that require massive data processing, such as Circle to Search, Generative Edit, and Webpage Summaries, still require an active internet connection.

Q4: How do I turn off Galaxy AI features for better privacy?
A: You can manage your privacy by navigating to Settings > Advanced Features > Advanced Intelligence. From here, you can toggle on “Process Data Only on Device.” This prevents your data from being sent to the Samsung or Google clouds, effectively disabling cloud-based AI while keeping your local AI tools active.

Q5: What is the “Now Brief” feature in One UI 7?
A: Now Brief is a proactive AI assistant that replaces traditional static widgets. It uses Galaxy AI to scan your calendar, health data (from a Galaxy Watch or Ring), and local weather to present a “Morning Briefing” on your lock screen. It can even suggest when to leave for an appointment based on real-time traffic data.

Q6: Can Galaxy AI identify songs like Shazam?
A: Yes. With the 2025 update to Circle to Search, you can now identify music playing in your environment or within any app (including YouTube or Instagram) simply by long-pressing the home button and tapping the “Music Search” icon.