Samsung is reportedly planning a major overhaul of its Bixby virtual assistant by integrating conversational AI from Perplexity, positioning Bixby as a direct competitor to Google’s Gemini, Apple’s Siri enhanced with ChatGPT, and Amazon’s Alexa. If confirmed, this new Bixby version is expected to debut with the Galaxy S26 lineup, marking a shift from treating Bixby as an optional tool to making it a central feature of the Galaxy experience.
According to rumors, Samsung is testing a hybrid setup where Perplexity’s AI would handle more complex queries, online research, and web search results, while traditional device functions like alarms, reminders, and settings would remain under Bixby’s control. This division mirrors typical user behavior—quick, on-device tasks handled locally, with deeper internet-based questions managed by Perplexity’s sophisticated language model. Samsung’s discussions with Perplexity reportedly include an exclusive deal aimed at augmenting Bixby with advanced search and agentic capabilities, potentially leveraging Perplexity’s recently launched Comet for Android that automates multi-step tasks.
Samsung’s motivation for partnering with Perplexity lies in enhancing Bixby’s reasoning and real-time web synthesis capacities—areas where it has lagged behind rivals despite powerful hardware in Galaxy devices. Perplexity’s AI uses retrieval-augmented generation to provide accurate, citation-backed answers for complex questions while keeping sensitive device commands private. Strategically, this reduces Samsung’s dependence on Google’s cloud and positions Bixby as a versatile assistant that could influence user interaction models across Samsung’s smartphone and broader device ecosystem, including TVs and wearables.
The anticipated user experience on Galaxy devices would be tiered: Bixby would manage fast, privacy-sensitive tasks like setting timers and toggling settings, while Perplexity would power information-rich features such as trip planning, technical support, or summarizing lengthy content. Subscription options might be integrated, allowing users to select free or premium AI tiers or fallback to offline Bixby functions. Samsung’s significant investment in Perplexity, now valued around $20 billion, fuels rapid AI advancement that the company intends to convert into mainstream enhancements across its devices.
Before the Galaxy S26 launch, key factors to watch include privacy controls, cloud query toggles, transparent sourcing of AI responses, and regional legal compliance. If successful, this Bixby-Perplexity fusion would represent Samsung’s most significant AI assistant evolution yet, providing a unique alternative to Apple’s and Google’s AI ecosystems and potentially reshaping how Galaxy users engage with their devices.
