Google’s large imaginative and prescient for Gemini, AI, and XR

Google introduced a bunch of recent stuff final week, from Gemini 2.0 and Challenge Mariner to Android XR and Challenge Moohan. As ever with Google, it seems like lots of stuff with out essentially a coherent plan behind it. However in case you look carefully sufficient, and begin to put among the items collectively, the mixture of these bulletins would possibly as much as one thing like Google’s imaginative and prescient for the way forward for every thing.

On this episode of The Vergecast (our final Tuesday episode of the 12 months), The Verge’s Kylie Robison and Victoria Tune be part of the present to do some Google puzzling. They describe their experiences with all of Google’s new initiatives and experiments, and clarify why Google thinks XR could possibly be the killer app for AI — and vice versa.

After that, Chris Grant, group writer for The Verge and Polygon, joins to speak concerning the two largest 2025 tales in gaming: the upcoming launches of Grand Theft Auto VI and the Nintendo Change 2. He explains why GTA is such an vital and enduring gaming franchise, why he’s assured the Change 2 gained’t be just like the Wii U, and why the entire gaming world is ready for these two issues so intently.

Lastly, we reply a query from the Vergecast Hotline (name 866-VERGE11 or e-mail vergecast@theverge.com!), with some assist from The Verge’s writer Helen Havlak. Helen talked about final week that she makes use of Figma to handle her backyard, and let’s simply say you all had some follow-up questions on that. So Helen got here again to clarify her entire system.

If you wish to know extra about every thing we talk about on this episode, listed here are some hyperlinks to get you began, starting with Google:

Additionally, right here is a few screenshot inspo of Helen’s Figma backyard in all its to-scale glory.