So Google recently announced that its once-prominent Google Assistant will be replaced by Gemini, a more advanced generative AI companion. I'm not confident this would work out considering Google's history of abruptly pivoting away from products that fail to meet their ambitious expectations.

Google Assistant launched in 2016 with significant promise. It allowed users to interact naturally through voice commands, manage schedules and control smart home devices. At its peak, Assistant supported over 90 countries, more than 30 languages, and served over half a billion monthly users. In 2023, users noticed a decline in Assistant's performance—basic commands failed more frequently, response times grew longer, and overall reliability suffered. I'm a Alexa user and I feel Amazon Alexa kinda degraded a bit too. This deterioration coincided with Google's increased focus on Bard (later integrated into Gemini), leaving Assistant neglected and underdeveloped.

Google's Messaging App Chaos

The pivot from Assistant to Gemini echoes Google's longstanding pattern of product uncertainty—particularly evident in its messaging strategy. Since launching Google Talk in 2005, Google's messaging offerings have undergone numerous confusing iterations:

Google's repeated launches and shutdowns created confusion and eroded user trust. Despite recent efforts to streamline messaging apps into Messages (SMS/RCS), Chat (instant messaging), and Meet (video calls), skepticism remains due to past instability.

If Google can demonstrate genuine dedication to Gemini -- avoiding the mistakes that plagued Assistant and its messaging apps -- it has a chance to regain user confidence.