Live Updates From the ‘Made by Google’ Pixel 11 Event 🔴
Follow along with the Gizmodo crew as we cover all the Pixel 11 series phones, Pixel Watch 5, and any other new Pixel-related announcements.
Raymond Wong, Kyle Barr, James Pero, and Matt Wille Updated August 12, 2026, 7:30 pm ET
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Google’s next “Made by Google” event is happening this Wednesday, Aug. 12, at 6 p.m. ET / 3 p.m. PT in New York City. The company will take the full wraps off the Pixel 11, Pixel 11 Pro, Pixel 11 Pro Fold, and Pixel Watch 5.
How do we know all that? Because Google has been posting teaser videos with the official names since last week.
Last year, Google had comedian Jimmy Fallon host its Pixel 10 launch event, and this year comedian Trevor Noah will be handling hosting duties. Other big-name guests promoting the new Pixel hardware will include Golden State Warriors point guard Stephen Curry, Call Her Daddy podcast host Alex Cooper, Indian cricket player Shubman Gill, and Japanese actress and model Ayami Nakajo.
As usual with these big tech launches, Gizmodo will be in attendance at the unusually late event and live blogging it all. Come back on Wednesday to hear it all. Let’s see if Noah does a better job than Fallon!
Aug 12Good Night!
Uh, and that’s it. The show is over. Trevor Noah left and PinkPantheress danced on stage with her DJ. It was kinda awkward NGL. Go look at all our Pixel coverage! —Raymond Wong
Aug 12Bereft
Look what you made me do, Google. I was only 30 minutes in, and I was left bereft of any lubricating aid. This long slide toward inevitability drove me to existential internment, locked into the embrace of Pixel and Gemini, my own patience a casualty of the search giant’s never-ending march toward… I’m not entirely sure. Perhaps the point was to bore us into compliance, to accept Gemini into our lives. —Kyle Barr
Aug 12PinkPantheress, Finally
As promised early in the show, we finally get a live performance from PinkPantheress. She’s doing “Illegal” off her most recent album and looking great while doing so. Google won some cool factor points with this one. Apparently none of the Consumer Tech team knows who she is? Come on, guys. —Matthew Wille
Aug 12Now It Makes Sense
I’m now convinced that Trevor Noah did all of this just to meet soccer legend, Steven Gerarrd, who was ushered out at the last minute. Was it worth it, Trevor? —James Pero
Aug 12Trying to Convince a Room Full of iPhone Lifers to Switch
Call Her Daddy podcast host Alex Cooper is recounting her story switching to a Pixel (presumably from an iPhone). A quick glance at the influencers and creators in the crowd shows there are a lot of iPhone users. Google is trying to convince them that switching to Pixel is not “scary.” More of your stuff moves over. They’re also talking up RCS aka green bubbles that work better with iMessage features. Doesn’t feel like this audience is convinced lmao. —Raymond Wong
Aug 12Taking Shots at Apple and Garmin
Google really wants you to know how strong its health and fitness tracking capabilities are. Google claimed the new Pixel Watch 5’s GPS-based run route tracking is better than either the Apple Watch Ultra 3 or the beloved Garmin Fenix 8 Pro. Whether or not that’s true, the Google crew behind the scenes was sure to let out some cheers and claps the first time it bothered to mention a single competing product. —Kyle Barr
Aug 12A Health Guardian
I already told you guys earlier today that the Pixel Watch 5 will be the first smartwatch to track insulin resistance. It’ll also have “health guardian” features, including blood pressure trends and breathing emergency detection. It can detect when your oxygen levels are too low and then call emergency services; it’s coming to Europe first and then other countries “soon.”
For what it’s worth, the term “health guardian” is not something Google invented for smartwatches. Apple started calling the Apple Watch the same term with the launch of the Apple Watch Series 4 and its fall detection.
Still, these health guardian features are greatly appreciated on a smartwatch and could really save lives. —Raymond Wong
Aug 12Pixels Now Translate ASL
Google brought out stage and screen actor Daniel Durant to showcase its ASL translation abilities. Durant, who has been deaf from birth, was able to use the combination of facial expressions and ASL to show accurate and relatively fast translation capabilities. The feature is based on Google DeepMind’s SL2T layer, and the live demo showed the feature seems relatively fast.
Durant called it “a good start” since it can recognize the expression and tone of his signing. Sign to Text is available currently only in American Sign Language, but Google promised it will include more languages in the future. —Kyle Barr
Aug 12Not Lost In Dictation
Multi-language dictation is pretty useful, I have to say. All you have to do is ask your Pixel to translate into a different language, and boom, it should work. Fewer taps is hard to argue with. That’s the AI most people want. —James Pero
Aug 12“Typing Sucks”
He’s not wrong. A new feature called Rambler automatically removes filler words like “uh” and “yeah” and “umm” when you dictate. I love this feature. It’s one of those small things that’s a game-changer. —Raymond Wong
Aug 12Somebody Said What We’ve All Been Thinking… to Google’s Face
Trevor Noah mentioned right to Google’s face that the initial AI promise, featured on Google Pixel devices that arrived just two and three years ago, that all the AI image and poem generation capabilities were effectively pointless. Of course, Noah is there to promote Google’s latest “agentic” capabilities. Still, the comment is a good example of why we’re all still so wary about these overt AI promises. “Can it eat my food for me?” Noah asked. “Maybe in a few years.” —Kyle Barr
Aug 12Another Guest Appearance
South Korean DJ and singer Peggy Gou is here. Peggy sat down, chatted for like a minute, and then Noah turned things over to a guy in Brooklyn to demo some Pixel camera features, like Magic Capture. Shoulda had Peggy DJ. —Raymond Wong
Aug 12Stare at the Light. The Light Will Set You Free
Google’s new Pixel 11 doesn’t look all that different from a Pixel 10. If you ignore the new color choices, the big new exterior feature is the HiLight. It’s essentially a notification light that will let you know if you’re getting a call when your phone is face-down. You can set the light to glow different colors depending on the caller. You can pretend you actually have some international music sensations in your roller deck and have them glow purple, though not red, as Trevor Noah erroneously implied. Eventually, Google will allow HiLight to showcase other alerts. —Kyle Barr
Aug 12Pixel Buds Get (Almost) No Love
The Pixel Buds Pro 2 may have gotten a small software update and a new color (Olive), but I’m going to consider this an off-year for Google’s wireless earbuds. Pixel Buds Pro stans are going to have to wait just a little bit longer for something to get truly excited about. —James Pero
Aug 12Why Is Google So Obsessed With Zoom?
The Pixel 11 Pros has a 5x telephoto camera that can zoom in to 120x with “Pro Zoom” which uses AI to enhance a blurry pic into a sharper one. I feel like Google is obsessed with zoom in a way other phone makers aren’t. Does anyone even shoot at 120x? I don’t know about you, but I’m on an African safari often. —Raymond Wong
Aug 12TENSOR!!!111!!!1
Google’s new phone processor is the Tensor G6, and instead of Jimmy Fallon yelling “Tensor” at the top of his lungs to grab attention, Trevor Noah has a harder time getting the audience to care. The processor is designed for pushing Google’s strong camera capabilities, including a promised 120X zoom (which, let’s make it clear, is a digital zoom that depends on the processing capabilities to make images seem legible). In reality, Google promises the new chip is 25% faster in CPU capabilities compared to the Tensor G5. Pixel phones processors have never been their strong suit, so what really matters is how well the chip handles all the specially built AI software thanks to the new 50% faster TPU. —Kyle Barr
Aug 12Ohayo Gozaimasu!
Google’s first store in Japan opened today in Tokyo. Find it in Omotesando. If it’s anything like the Google stores in NYC, you’ll be able to try out all the new Pixel devices and decide for yourself if you like anything. (By the way, “ohayo gozaimasu” means “good morning” in Japanese.) —Raymond Wong
Aug 12That’s Quite a Few Folds
To torture-test its new foldable phone, Google said it folded and unfolded the Pixel 11 Fold Pro more than 83 million times, which is a lot of folds. A few days, maybe? I have no idea how many folds that is, but clearly Google put its new phone to the test. That poor robot is going to have arthritis. —James Pero
Aug 12Just Say AirTag, Trevor
The $29 Pixel Tag is exactly what it says on the tin: a Bluetooth tracker meant to compete with AirTags. It’s slim enough to fit in a wallet or on your keyring. But the real surprise was how far Trevor Noah had to go to not say the word “AirTag.” It was especially notable as he mentioned people talking on forums and online about the lack of a Google-owned tracker. Even Noah can’t break the whole Google blockade. —Kyle Barr
Aug 12Stephen Curry Does Pixel Watch 5
First came the Stephen Curry Fitbit Air and now he’s got his own version of the Pixel Watch 5. It’ll cost more than the regular versions, though. How badly do you want that limited edition band? —Raymond Wong
Aug 12“We Create” the Colors
Trevor Noah asked what I’m sure many of us have once had as a bathroom thought. How do massive corporations like Google choose which colors go to their phones? The Pixel 11 lineup includes a sand-baked pink color and a very green “Pistachio” alongside the regular Fog, which Google calls “sophisticated.” What’s strange is that Google likes to claim “we create” the colors. Noah made a good point. “You didn’t create black. I’m from Africa, I would know.” —Kyle Barr
Aug 12Trevor Noah on Google’s Smart Glasses Branding
Trevor Noah had a pretty interesting response to Rick Osterloh’s mention of “intelligent eyewear,” taking a beat to say, “intelligent eyewear… I’m trying to think of what that means…” It means “smart glasses,” Trevor, but for Google Glass reasons, I don’t think Google likes using that terminology. —James Pero
Aug 12This Audience Didn’t Understand the Assignment
We were told before the event to “CLAP, LAUGH, AND LET’S HAVE A GREAT TIME.” This audience is failing hard at the assignment. Not hearing enough enthusiasm. Weakkkk. Why are the monkeys not dancing?! Trevor is funny. Genuinely, no sarcasm. —Raymond Wong
Aug 12“AI Means Gemini”
Trevor’s brought out Google’s head of Pixel, Rick Osterloh. Dude seems more relaxed than he’s ever been at these events. I would know, I’ve been going to these events for like 10 years. “For us, AI means Gemini,” he said. Over a billion people are now using the chatbot. —Raymond Wong
Aug 12Host Trevor Noah Is Out
Trevor Noah is already funnier in the first two minutes than Jimmy Fallon was as host of the Made by Google event last year. Solid job, Google. Y’all hired the right guy. —Raymond Wong
Aug 12PinkPantheress Will Be Performing
We were just told that PinkPantheress is performing at this event. I’m not familiar. Associate Editor Matt Wille seems to be familiar, though. “I love pinkpantheress. you guys gotta get into it,” he told us in Slack.
My excuse is I’m a boomer. Not really, but older than I look. —Raymond Wong
Aug 12A Cozy Stage
I AM IN. Here’s a look at the stage. There’s a DJ here spinning something for mostly Gen Z content creators packed into most of the seats here. I was called a “creator” and had to correct them that I’m a journalist. The person looked at me like I was an alien. LOL. —Raymond Wong
Aug 12Take a Shot Every Time Somebody Says ‘Gemini’
OK, but don’t actually do that. You would die within the first 10 minutes of the Made By Google 2026 showcase. However, I’m preparing for the main event in my own way, with a good ol’ Old Fashioned the way I like it: overly sweet. You can’t host a product showcase at 6 p.m. ET and not expect me to turn to drink to get myself through the nonstop AI announcements. How many rounds do you imagine it will take before I’m calling Gemini my best friend? —Kyle Barr
Aug 12How Google Feeds Us
Aug 12Got My Badge!
Heyooooo! I’m out heree ready for Trevor Noah! —Raymond Wong
Aug 12Live Translation Now Works With American Sign Language
Google’s big on AI translation, but we weren’t honestly expecting Google to facilitate live American Sign Language translation as well. The feature comes from Google’s DeepMind team, called SL2T (sign language to text) and is available exclusively on the Pixel 11 lineup. SL2T is not just for translation, either. Google promises you’ll be able to use sign language to type or talk to Gemini.
SL2T is our breakthrough sign language-to-text model powering new features for Deaf and hard of hearing users on @Android.
Starting with American Sign Language-to-English on Pixel 11, people can sign directly into Gboard and Live Transcribe instead of typing. pic.twitter.com/p9Vx7tJtLT
— Google DeepMind (@GoogleDeepMind) August 12, 2026
The sign-to-text feature should be available in Gboard and the Live Translate app, according to Google CEO Sundar Pichai. While it’s only available in ASL to start, Google DeepMind promised we’ll see it come to other countries’ sign language as well. Google promised the feature should also roll out to other Android phones in the future. —Kyle Barr
Aug 12Google’s Now Has It’s Own Tap to Share
Android phones and iPhones are feeling a little less estranged cousins as of late. AirDrop compatibility was a nice start, but how about quickly sharing contacts? Google is copying Apple’s Tap to Share feature with additions to Quick Share. Google’s latest update first posted to Reddit show how Pixel 6 or later owners can tap the tops of their screens together to share contact details, photos, videos, or websites. Google also promised the Quick Share feature will also be available on the latest Samsung Galaxy Z Fold 8, Z Fold 8 Ultra, and Z Flip 8 some day in the near future.
🤝 We’re updating Quick Share to enable sharing contact info, photos, & more between Pixel devices with just a tap!
This is rolling out today to Pixel 6 and newer devices & is coming soon to the Galaxy Z Fold8 Ultra, Fold8, and Flip8.
Learn more 👇https://t.co/0zJvGmwOH2pic.twitter.com/bG6UhjjwZF
— Mishaal Rahman (@MishaalRahman) August 12, 2026
Let’s guess how many more years before we’ll be able to Quick Share our contacts between Android and iPhone. —Kyle Barr
Aug 12Olive Pixel Buds Pro So Much
Google’s Pixel Buds Pro aren’t getting a major upgrade this year, but they did get a new color, olive, and some software upgrades, including improvements to active noise cancellation (ANC) that should make them more reliable regardless of the fit of the ear tip.
Google is also adding support for sleep features that can auto-detect when you’ve dozed off and stop playing music in response. It’s not groundbreaking stuff, but it’s something for all the Pixel Buds faithfuls out there. —James Pero
Aug 12Google’s Item Tracker Is Real
Google is indeed going to sell its own item tracker. It’s called the Pixel Tag and it works pretty much exactly like an AirTag. While the Pixel 11 phones and Pixel Watch 5 go on sale on Aug. 20, the Pixel Tag won’t be available until Nov. 11. $29 gets you one and $99 for a four-pack.
More details in my write-up below. —Raymond Wong
Aug 12Unsurprisingly, Pixel Watch 5 Is a Better Health Wearable
The Pixel Watch 5 is also official. No surprise: these smartwatches look identical to the Pixel Watch 4. They come in the same two sizes and have a faster chip, more RAM for Gemini, and include improved GPS. They also start at $50 more than before.
Blood pressure and insulin resistance tracking are the two big new health features. They’re coming later this fall, though they’ll also be available for Pixel Watch 3, Watch 4, and the Fitbit Air. Read my in-depth hands-on below for all of the other improvements that I don’t have time to cover here. —Raymond Wong
Aug 12My First Impressions of the Pixel 11, 11 Pros, and 11 Pro Fold
The keynote isn’t until tonight at 6 p.m. ET, but the embargo time for all of the Pixel news and hands-on is over, so I’m allowed to share details about everything that Google is launching.
First up, the Pixel 11, 11 Pro and 11 Pro XL, and 11 Pro Fold. These are fairly modest hardware refreshes—new colors, tweaked camera bars, improved cameras, and faster performance from the Tensor G6 chip—as Google leans harder into Gemini and AI. Most of the new stuff is software-centric. My favorite new feature is the Creator Suite, which makes it easier to record social videos with tools like a gridline and teleprompter.
As leaked, the Pixel 11 Pros and 11 Pro Fold have a new “HiLight” LED on the camera bar that lights up in a color when a contact is calling or when Gemini is talking or “thinking” (read: processing).
For everything new about the Pixel 11 phones, check out my hands-on below. —Raymond Wong
Aug 10Don’t Expect Any Googlebooks
As Gizmodo’s resident laptop guy, I’m very tuned in to every little rumor that pertains to the supposed souped-up sequel to Chromebooks, dubbed Googlebooks. However, based solely on how we haven’t seen the hide nor hair of these devices in the run-up to the Made By Google showcase, we probably won’t see anything about this new laptop form factor—nary a hint of that supposed “Glowbar” nor the supposed combination of ChromeOS and Android.
Google has promised us some more details in the fall. Based on all the leaked renders and the churning rumor mill, we may hear more details within the next few months. —Kyle Barr
Aug 10Here Comes Google’s Own AirTag
Apple has the AirTag 2, Samsung has the Galaxy SmartTag 2, and Motorola has the Moto Tag 2. So why shouldn’t Google have its own item tracker? That’s exactly what Google is reportedly planning. Its version will supposedly be called… the Pixel Tag. I know, real original. —Raymond Wong
Aug 10Faster AI for the Pixel Watch
Along with the Pixel 11 phones, Google will announce the Pixel Watch 5. Just don’t expect any major hardware changes. It’s expected to come in the same two sizes (41mm and 45mm) and Google’s signature round, pebble-like shape. Leaks suggest the smartwatch will have more RAM for more responsive Gemini performance. Google might increase the price by $50, too. —Raymond Wong
Imagine a watch that tracks your health, sleep and fitness…but still has the decency to look like a watch.
Google #PixelWatch 5.
August 12.
Learn more and sign up for #MadeByGoogle updates: https://t.co/huJURUYrJKpic.twitter.com/IJ7G3EaWtC
— Made by Google (@madebygoogle) August 7, 2026
Aug 10Just Better Cameras on the Pixel 11 Pro Fold?
While Samsung is winning everyone with its new, shorter, and wider Galaxy Z Fold 8 (read my review here!), Google will march on with the design that it established with the Pixel 9 Pro Fold. In its teaser video below, we can see raised lenses on the camera bump, suggesting improved optics. There’s also that purported “HiLight” notification light teased for the non-folding Pixel 11 series.
Is that going to be enough to get people buying Google’s new foldable? —Raymond Wong
Aug 10Return of the Notification LED?
The Pixel 11, Pixel 11 Pro / 11 Pro XL, and Pixel 11 Pro Fold should look pretty similar to the Pixel 10 series, which looked similar to the Pixel 9 series. So what’s new besides new Gemini software features? Google is teasing some kind of glowing, rainbow-colored LED light inside of the camera bar that replaces the traditional flash and temperature sensor (on the Pro models). Leaks say it’ll be called “HiLight” and display “subtle light and color on the back of your device to inform you of important activity when it’s face down.” —Raymond Wong
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Reporting from Gizmodo contributed to this story.
