Image: Samsung
TL;DR: What to know about Galaxy AI on the Galaxy S26
- Samsung is calling the Galaxy S26 its first true AI OS phone—built in partnership with Google and Android to weave AI into every layer of the operating system, not just individual features.
- The biggest headliner is agentic AI: Ask Gemini to order a ride or reorder your dinner, and it handles the whole thing in the background. It's in beta, though, and only available on the S26 for now.
- Now Nudge makes the S26 feel like a phone that actually pays attention to your life by reading your notifications, knowing your schedule, and surfacing the right information before you even think to ask for it.
- The creative AI features got an upgrade, but most of them feel more like refinements than revelations—especially if you've been watching what Pixel has been doing.
- As always, take the marketing with a grain of salt. AI features have a habit of sounding transformative in a keynote and feeling unfinished at launch.
Samsung unveiled the Galaxy S26 series today at Galaxy Unpacked in San Francisco, and the pitch is bigger than any individual feature: Samsung says it's moving from an operating system to an intelligent system. That's a bold claim. And honestly, a few of these features actually back it up, while a few others left me squinting at my screen, wondering if I'd heard this one before.
Here's how the new Galaxy AI features actually break down.
Android + Samsung = AI OS. But what does that actually mean?
Image: Samsung
One of the more interesting moments at Unpacked today was when Samsung took the stage alongside Google to announce they're building toward what they're calling an AI OS: a version of Android where AI isn't a layer on top of the operating system, but woven into it at the foundation.
The most concrete example of what that looks like is agentic AI, and it's the feature I'm most excited about.
The idea is simple: Instead of opening apps, tapping through menus, and executing tasks step-by-step, you tell Gemini what you want, and it gets it done while you do something else entirely. Long-press the power button and say Book me the cheapest Uber home, and Gemini opens the app in a secure virtual window, compares ride options, preps the checkout, and sends you a notification when it needs your final confirmation.
For now, this feature only covers the basics. Booking rides, ordering food through apps like DoorDash, and pulling together a grocery cart via Kroger or Walmart. It's a narrow scope, but really focused on the kinds of tasks you actually do a dozen times a week.
Just keep in mind, this feature is still early and S26-exclusive for now. Google is expected to roll this out more broadly alongside Android 17.
Now Nudge: Your phone finally knows what you're talking about
Image: Samsung
Beyond agentic AI, there's a quieter Galaxy AI upgrade on the S26 that I think deserves just as much attention: Now Nudge.
The idea is that Galaxy AI reads the context of your conversations and proactively jumps in with the right information before you even think to ask for it. If someone texts you about grabbing dinner, it picks up on that context and nudges you with the restaurant's address, a calendar prompt, or even photos from a past visit—all without you having to lift a finger.
Of course, a feature that reads your texts and knows your schedule is only as good as the privacy protections behind it—and Samsung actually has a solid answer for that.
Samsung’s Personal Data Engine (PDE) pulls information from across your Galaxy devices to power these experiences, and Knox locks it down at the hardware level—meaning none of it ever leaves your phone. It's a more thoughtful privacy story than we usually hear from Samsung, and it matters a lot more now that AI has its hands in nearly everything your phone does.
The creative features? They're fine
The S26 also brings small updates to Galaxy AI's creative tools, including AI image generation, photo editing, video magic, and a new Creative Studio that lets you describe or sketch what you want and generate from there.
These features work well enough, but this part of the keynote had me squinting a little. A lot of what Galaxy announced today as new felt like they were catching up to, or in some cases just rebranding, things Pixel phones have already been doing for a while. If you're upgrading from a Galaxy S24 or earlier, you'll notice the difference, but if you're watching from the outside? It's not much of a leap.
Pre-orders are open now: Here's what to know
Image: Samsung
All three Galaxy S26 models—the S26, S26+, and S26 Ultra—are available for pre-order today at Samsung.com and major carriers. Samsung is offering up to $900 off with an eligible trade-in, or $150 off without one, when you pre-order directly through Samsung.com. Phones are expected to ship on March 11, 2026.
Pricing starts at $899.99 for the Galaxy S26, $1,099.99 for the S26+, and $1,299.99 for the S26 Ultra. Which, if you’re thinking, “Wow, that seems expensive,” you’re right. The S26 series is the most expensive Galaxy series at launch in Samsung's history. But fortunately, most phone carriers will be offering discounts and financing options if those prices are just out of your budget range.
For the latest Samsung deals, we keep our Samsung phone deals page updated weekly so you never miss a good one.
A note before you run to pre-order
I'd be doing you a disservice if I didn't say this plainly: AI features almost always sound better in a keynote than they feel in real life. We've seen with just about every major AI phone launch in the last few years that features are announced with breathless enthusiasm, then quietly scaled back, delayed, or arrive with so many asterisks and limitations that they barely resemble what was promised on stage. So take the new Galaxy AI features with a grain of salt.
It's also worth being honest about who these features are actually for. If you're not someone who's going to lean into AI tools on a daily basis, a lot of what was announced today probably won't change your life. And in that case, a previous-gen Galaxy at a lower price point might be a smarter buy. Or consider keeping your current phone until something that you would use comes around.
The S26 is built for people who want to push AI as far as it can go right now, and if that's not you, that's completely fine.
Galaxy A26 5G
- 6.7 inch display
- Rear Cameras: 50MP, 8MP, 2MP
- Front Camera: 13MP
Galaxy A37 5G 128GB
- 6.7 inch display
- Rear Cameras: 50MP, 8MP, 5MP
- Front Camera: 12MP
Galaxy S26 5G 256GB
- 6.3 inch display
- Rear Cameras: 50MP, 10MP, 12MP
- Front Camera: 12MP
Galaxy Z Flip7 FE 5G 128GB
- 6.6 inch display
- Rear Cameras: 50MP, 12MP
- Front Camera: 10MP
Galaxy S26 5G 512GB
- 6.3 inch display
- Rear Cameras: 50MP, 10MP, 12MP
- Front Camera: 12MP
Scott Houghton
Jr. Staff Writer
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