Samsung revamps Bixby as a more conversational AI assistant with One UI 8.5

Samsung

Samsung says the new version of Bixby has been redesigned to function as a “conversational agent”. Instead of memorising specific commands or navigating menus manually, users can now describe what they want in plain language.

For example, saying “I don’t want the screen to time out while I’m still looking at it” will prompt Bixby to enable the relevant setting automatically. If asked something like, “Why is my phone screen always on when it’s inside my pocket?”, the assistant can suggest multiple possible fixes rather than returning a single static answer.

The goal is to make interactions feel closer to chatting with a person — or increasingly, with modern AI chatbots — rather than issuing rigid voice commands.

Web access and wider rollout

The updated assistant also gains access to fresher information from the web. Users can conduct searches without opening a browser, with results displayed directly within Bixby’s interface. That brings it closer in functionality to assistants integrated with large language models.

The new Bixby is currently available through the One UI 8.5 beta on select Samsung devices in South Korea, Germany, India, Poland, the UK and the US. A broader rollout is expected over time.

Whether this upgrade meaningfully changes Bixby’s position against rivals like Google Assistant or Siri remains to be seen. But Samsung is clearly signalling that it wants Bixby back in the conversation — this time with a more capable AI core.