Google’s Circle to Search adds continuous translation while scrolling

Circle to search

Google has updated Circle to Search, its feature that allows users to quickly search content on their screen using gestures such as circling, highlighting, scribbling, or tapping. The new functionality enables translations to appear continuously as users scroll through content.

“Translation is one of the most-used features in Circle to Search — you can get more context for social posts from creators who speak a different language, or browse menus when you’re booking restaurant reservations while traveling abroad,” Google said in a blog post. “But until now, you had to restart the translation process every time you scrolled or the content on the screen changed.”

With the update, users can now see translations as they scroll down a page or switch between apps. For instance, while browsing Instagram, text in a different language on posts or images will now translate automatically as users swipe.

To use the feature, users need to long-press the home button or navigation bar to launch Circle to Search, tap the “Translate” icon, and select “scroll and translate.” The update will begin rolling out this week on Android, initially for select Samsung Galaxy devices.

Google has been steadily enhancing Circle to Search since its launch last year. At Samsung Unpacked 2025, the company introduced AI Overviews for visual searches and one-tap actions for phone numbers, URLs, and email addresses displayed on screen. More recently, Circle to Search gained AI Mode, allowing users to explore complex topics and ask follow-up questions directly from a search.

This continuous translation feature builds on Google’s goal of making information on screens more accessible and interactive, particularly for multilingual content and international users.