Illustration by Alex Castro / The Verge
Google has announced the second-generation version of its Google Assistant software, which promises new capabilities, a design overhaul, and a noticeable boost to speed. That last upgrade means the new Assistant can launch and return answers to queries much faster than before. The service is coming first to Pixel phones, and Google made the announcement onstage at its Pixel 4 reveal event in New York City on Tuesday.
We already knew quite a bit about the new Assistant thanks to Google’s initial reveal back at the I/O developer conference in May, but we also got to see it in action on the Pixel 4 ahead of release thanks to a flood of leaks that included, among other things, new Assistant marketing videos.
Quickly open apps, search…