Pixel

Google Developing Voice-Activated Emergency SOS Feature for Android Devices

Google is working on a voice-activated Emergency SOS function for Android that would allow users to summon help without touching their smartphone. The feature, discovered in the Personal Safety app code by Android Authority, appears to trigger after the user says the word 'Help' three times in sequence. Once activated, the system would automatically determine location, begin emergency video recording, and place a call to emergency services. The current method requires pressing the power button five times, which can be impractical in certain situations. Additional code strings suggest optional voice confirmation with phrases such as 'Say yes to continue' and 'Say cancel to dismiss Emergency SOS'. The function is not yet available to users and may eventually reach non-Pixel devices running the Personal Safety app, though supported languages and models remain undisclosed.

Google Enables Document Backup to Drive in Stable Play Services 26.26 Release

Google has rolled out automatic document backup from Android devices to Google Drive in the stable version of Google Play Services 26.26. The feature, which the company prepared for nearly a year, adds a new Documents option in Settings on Pixel phones under Accounts and backup. It remains disabled by default to avoid uploading the Downloads folder without user consent. Once enabled, supported files including PDF, DOC, PPT, XLS, ZIP and even APK files are copied to a new Android backups folder on Drive, with separate subfolders created for each device. The backup consumes storage quota and offers no automatic two-way sync, requiring manual cleanup when disabled. Traces of the capability first appeared in August 2025, followed by an official mention in February 2026 and beta testing before the current stable deployment.