Google on Wednesday said it is adding a new workday routine to Google Assistant to help users stay productive and fight the blur that can happen while working from home.
The voice assist will prompt a user to do normal activities throughout the day, like ‘get up and move,’ ‘go for a walk,’ and ‘grab a glass of water to keep the body up and running.’
“This week, we’re rolling out a new workday routine that automatically reminds you of all the small and big things to do throughout your work day—from staying on top of your calendar to taking a break away from the desk—that can sometimes be easy to forget,” Google said in a blog post.
After enabling the routine in phone settings, users can start with a pre-set routine. For instance, Monday through Friday at 10:00 a.m., they can set up to get a message from Google Assistant on smart speaker or display saying “it’s time to stand up and stretch!” At 2:00 p.m., it might suggest going for a walk, and then to grab a glass of water at 3:00 p.m.
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Google also enables its users to customise actions and time blocks to fit into their own schedule. To start with, the feature will be available in English.
The search giant is also rolling out Gentle Sleep and Wake feature to all smart lights in the next few days to help a user wind down at night, and wake them up in the morning. In the evening, just say “Hey Google, sleep my lights at 10:00 p.m.” as a reminder to get to bed on time.
Similarly, saying “Hey Google, wake my lights at 8:00 a.m.” will prompt lights to fade in and change colour for a wake up. If a user uses Google Assistant alarms already, they just have to say “turn on gentle wake up,” and smart lights will start brightening 30 minutes before the alarm to help resist the urge to hit the snooze button.
