Updates·October 1, 2026, 18:30

Google launches Guided Vision: AI camera guides blind users

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Google is rolling out a new feature in Gemini Live designed to help blind and low-vision people have their everyday surroundings described through their phone's camera. The feature is called Guided Vision and was developed in collaboration with people who are themselves blind or low-vision.

Google has launched a new feature in its AI assistant Gemini Live designed to help blind and low-vision people. The feature is called Guided Vision and is available on Android phones running version 9 and up, in the countries and languages where Gemini Live is already available.

Gemini Live is the part of Google's AI assistant where you can talk to the AI in real time and also share your camera with it. With Guided Vision, you can hold the camera up to your surroundings, and the AI immediately describes what it sees while you ask follow-up questions.

Guides you to aim correctly

What's new is that the AI now also guides the user to aim at the right subject. If the camera is pointed in the wrong direction, Gemini can say something like "move a little to the right" or "tilt the camera down," so it can see what you want to know about.

In practice, the feature can be used for things like reading small print on product packaging, checking a menu in a dark restaurant or figuring out which object you are fumbling for in a drawer. In other words, it is meant as help in many ordinary, everyday situations, not just for big tasks.

Developed with help from blind testers

Google developed the feature in collaboration with Aira, a company that offers professional visual interpreting for blind and low-vision people. Aira has contributed tens of thousands of hours of data on how to describe surroundings for people who cannot see them. More than 1,000 people from Aira's network of testers also tried out the feature before it was released to the public.

At the same time, Google points out that Guided Vision is an aid that can make mistakes. The feature is not a medical product, and it should not be used as a substitute for a white cane or to navigate safely in traffic or on the street. In other words, it is meant as extra help in everyday life, not as a guarantee of safety.

What it means for you

If you are blind or low-vision, you can now get help in everyday life with things like reading text on products or finding things in a drawer. If you have an Android phone with version 9 or newer, you can open Gemini Live and try Guided Vision right now. Remember that the feature can make mistakes: use it as an extra aid, not as a replacement for your white cane or for getting around safely in traffic.