Google Assistant revamps ‘Your people’ page for setting contact relationships

Abner Li | Aug 26 2019 - 9:04 am PT

For the past year, we’ve been tracking a revamp of Google Assistant’s “Your people” settings for managing family members and other important contacts. The simplified interface is now rolling out on Android.

Assistant (and the Google app before it) have long had the ability to specify relationships and nicknames to contacts. The process for establishing connections is no longer voice-only, with Assistant settings getting a redesigned “Your people” menu page.

Google on the new screen notes how “Your Assistant helps you share & keep in touch with the important people in your life.” Google family groups are now listed here with users able to quickly view members (avatars, names, emails, etc.), add/invite, and delete. This grouping allows users to share Google One, YouTube TV, and Play Store content like apps, movies, TV shows, and books.

At the bottom, “other important people your Assistant should know” are listed. “Add person” begins the process by opening a Google Contacts picker. All details are synced to Google Contacts, with an entry there required before proceeding in Assistant.

Afterwards, a new screen allows you to specify “How you’re connected,” birthday, and home address. The first makes possible colloquial voice commands — like “call my sister” — and Google offers 23 options, as well as “None” and “Other.”

As of today, Google Assistant’s revamped “Your people” interface is live on both the latest Google app stable and beta releases.

Google in recent months has been slowly updating Assistant settings pages with the Material Theme. First shown off at I/O 2019, a “Basic info” page that groups together your nickname, birthday, and phone number recently went live as well.