These 6 New AI Features Are Coming to Chromebook Plus Devices
On Monday, Google announced the Lenovo Chromebook Plus 14 , the company’s latest AI-focused Chromebook . This Chromebook features a MediaTek Kompanio Ultra processor, an NPU with up to 50 TOPS (trillion operations per second) performance, and a battery that lasts up to 17 hours.
But the announcement isn’t just about Google’s newest Chromebook Plus device: The company is also rolling out new AI features to all of its Chromebook Plus devices. There are two new features exclusive to the Lenovo Chromebook Plus 14 (and running entirely on the device), and four more that will work on your existing Chromebook Plus device.
Smart Grouping (Lenovo Chromebook Plus 14 only)
Google’s latest Chromebook can organize your open tabs and documents into “logical groups” based on what you’re currently doing on your Chromebook. In theory, this feature should help sort your various windows into organized sections, so that relevant tabs and documents are where they belong. In practice, though, I can imagine this would be a bit of a disaster. What if the AI doesn’t fully understand my workflow and decides that tabs that are relevant to my work aren’t actually relevant? I’d rather scroll through my own mess of tabs than try to decipher the AI’s interpretation of my work.
AI-powered image editing in Gallery (Lenovo Chromebook Plus 14 only)
Google says the Lenovo Chromebook Plus 14 can also edit images directly in the Gallery app using AI. While this could include several editing features, the company highlights two examples: AI-powered background removal and creating stickers from images. (I’d argue that the second example doesn’t actually count as image editing , but I digress.)
Select to search with Lens
Google is introducing a “ Circle to Search ” feature on Chromebooks. The company calls it “Select to search with Lens,” which lets you highlight a portion of the screen to start an AI-powered web search. For example, if someone sends you a photo of sneakers and you want to find out where to buy them, you can press and hold the start button, highlight the image of the sneakers, and let go, and a new web search will pop up.
Text Capture
“Text capture” is what Google calls optical character recognition (OCR) , or the ability of a program to understand text in an image and copy and paste it elsewhere. When you select an image that contains text, you’ll see these OCR options, and while you can click the “copy” button to paste the text elsewhere, you may also have other options. For example, if you select an invitation, you may see an option to add details to a new calendar entry.
Create images quickly with AI
Google has a new Quick Insert key for adding images, photos, or emoji to documents without having to leave the app. While you can use existing images and emoji, the catch is the ability to generate images using AI and insert them directly into your document.
“Help me read” simplifies the text
Google’s existing “Help me read” feature is getting a new feature. In addition to summarizing a web page or answering questions about a document, “Help me read” can now also simplify text. According to Google, the feature “takes complex language and makes it more understandable, turning dense text into easier-to-read text.”
This can certainly be useful, but I can’t help but wonder if we really want AI to simplify everything we see on our devices. If you’re running late and need a Sparknotes version of what you’re reading? Sure. If you really want to understand a topic that’s way beyond your expertise? Fine. But I worry that this “simplification” could become too common, to the point where we no longer need to think about complex topics.