Tech giant Google on Tuesday unveiled its new Pixel 9 smartphone series, which includes artificial intelligence (AI) technology, announcing that they would hit Taiwan shelves on Thursday next week.
The Pixel 9 series could help consumers better envision the potential of artificial intelligence, analysts said.
The phones are also expected to boost Google’s competitiveness against Apple Inc, which has teamed up with OpenAI to develop AI applications for iPhones, they said.
Photo: Reuters
The Pixel weaves users more tightly into Google’s online services, taking a page from Apple’s strategy with the iPhone and App Store.
The Pixel 9 models use Google’s Gemini AI capabilities, offering consumers an alternative to the iPhone’s Apple Intelligence AI.
The entry model Pixel 9 with a 6.3-inch Actua display, the more advanced 6.3-inch Pixel 9 Pro, and the 6.8-inch Pixel 9 Pro XL, would be available in Taiwan at starting prices of NT$26,490, NT$33,490 and NT$39,990, respectively, Google said.
The Pixel 9 Pro Fold — the second generation of Google’s foldable smartphone — is scheduled to go on sale in Taiwan on Sept. 4 with a starting price of NT$56,990, the company said.
Pixels account for a tiny sliver of the global smartphone market dominated by Samsung Electronics Co and Apple, but Google said that its new line is a chance to answer what — after all the hype — AI can actually do for customers.
“I understand people’s skepticism,” Google senior vice president of devices Rick Osterloh said at the company’s campus in Mountain View, California, on Tuesday.
“There have been so many promises, so many ‘coming soons,’ and not enough real-world helpfulness when it comes to AI — which is why today we’re getting real,” Osterloh said.
However AI-infused Pixels also raise questions about how well Google is safeguarding personal data and how regulators would react to the tech giant’s push to make users even more dependent on its platform.
A US judge last week handed Google a major legal blow, ruling in a landmark antitrust case that it has maintained a monopoly with its dominant search engine.
Google said it has prioritized privacy, from protecting data used by its AI to letting users create password-protected private spaces for apps and other content.
Pixel 9 models let Gemini AI handle personal requests, sending no sensitive information off the device, it said.
Semiconductor shares in China surged yesterday after Reuters reported the US had ordered chipmaking giant Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) to halt shipments of advanced chips to Chinese customers, which investors believe could accelerate Beijing’s self-reliance efforts. TSMC yesterday started to suspend shipments of certain sophisticated chips to some Chinese clients after receiving a letter from the US Department of Commerce imposing export restrictions on those products, Reuters reported on Sunday, citing an unnamed source. The US imposed export restrictions on TSMC’s 7-nanometer or more advanced designs, Reuters reported. Investors figured that would encourage authorities to support China’s industry and bought shares
TECH WAR CONTINUES: The suspension of TSMC AI chips and GPUs would be a heavy blow to China’s chip designers and would affect its competitive edge Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電), the world’s biggest contract chipmaker, is reportedly to halt supply of artificial intelligence (AI) chips and graphics processing units (GPUs) made on 7-nanometer or more advanced process technologies from next week in order to comply with US Department of Commerce rules. TSMC has sent e-mails to its Chinese AI customers, informing them about the suspension starting on Monday, Chinese online news outlet Ijiwei.com (愛集微) reported yesterday. The US Department of Commerce has not formally unveiled further semiconductor measures against China yet. “TSMC does not comment on market rumors. TSMC is a law-abiding company and we are
FLEXIBLE: Taiwan can develop its own ground station equipment, and has highly competitive manufacturers and suppliers with diversified production, the MOEA said The Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA) yesterday disputed reports that suppliers to US-based Space Exploration Technologies Corp (SpaceX) had been asked to move production out of Taiwan. Reuters had reported on Tuesday last week that Elon Musk-owned SpaceX had asked their manufacturers to produce outside of Taiwan given geopolitical risks and that at least one Taiwanese supplier had been pushed to relocate production to Vietnam. SpaceX’s requests place a renewed focus on the contentious relationship Musk has had with Taiwan, especially after he said last year that Taiwan is an “integral part” of China, sparking sharp criticism from Taiwanese authorities. The ministry said
US President Joe Biden’s administration is racing to complete CHIPS and Science Act agreements with companies such as Intel Corp and Samsung Electronics Co, aiming to shore up one of its signature initiatives before US president-elect Donald Trump enters the White House. The US Department of Commerce has allocated more than 90 percent of the US$39 billion in grants under the act, a landmark law enacted in 2022 designed to rebuild the domestic chip industry. However, the agency has only announced one binding agreement so far. The next two months would prove critical for more than 20 companies still in the process
RSS