Samsung teases new Bixby and AI features ahead of Galaxy S25 event [Video]

Andrew Romero | Jan 6 2025 - 5:00 pm PT

After opening up the Samsung Galaxy Reserve program for the Galaxy S25, Samsung is trading a new and improved Bixby prior to the Unpacked event in a couple of weeks.

When the Galaxy S24 series launched at the beginning of 2024, One UI 6 brought on a lot of changes that swirled around the premise of new AI improvements. The interesting part about that push was the absence of Buxby, Samsung’s long-running proprietary digital assistant. For one reason or another, the company left the assistant out and offered users plenty of Gemini integration.

Samsung released a teaser trailer today featuring the absent assistant’s voice. The video starts out with a shot of several Galaxy S25 phones arranged so that light shining through the cracks resembles the Galaxy AI symbol. With that, a familiar mic appears on the screen with a voice that asks, “Hey, when is the Samsung Galaxy Unpacked?”

The mic icon is the nail in the coffin, pointing to a prominent Bixby return on the Galaxy S25 with some likely improvements. This comes as a new and improved Bixby was showcased in China on the exclusive W25 series. That version is supposedly able to pull video into requests and understand “complex user intentions.” It sounds as though Bixby is becoming a little more sentient in the push towards a fuller AI experience.

Unlike how Google approached an AI assistant with a different moniker and app, Samsung seems to be simply changing how Bixby is represented on Samsung devices and the Galaxy S25. This might prove to be a good move as most users are already familiar with the assistant.

The video also confirms what we already know — Samsung Unpacked 2025 will be on January 22. Prior to that, Samsung is currently running the Galaxy Reserve program, which offers a $50 credit towards the Galaxy S25 series if you sign up for free. The best part is that it doubles as an entry into a sweepstakes to win $5,000.