Google finally heard your Nest and Assistant frustrations, promises a fix

What you need to know

• Google is aware of customer complaints regarding smart home devices and is promising a fix.
• The company's head of Home and Nest took to social media this week to speak to frustrated users directly.
• Unfortunately, it looks like smart home issues won't get a proper fix until this fall.

People deep in Google's smart home ecosystem, using both Google Nest hardware and Google Assistant software, have noticed a sharp deterioration in reliability and utility for months. For instance, in January 2025, an issue caused Home and Nest speakers to fail answering basic requests. That's just one of the many problems that have plagued Nest user amid the Assistant to Gemini transition, but there may finally be a light at the end of this tunnel.

Google's Chief Product Officer for Home and Nest, Anish Kattukaran took to X (formerly Twitter) this week to acknowledge user frustrations and promise a fix. "I want to acknowledge the recent feedback about Google Assistant reliability on our home devices," Kattukaran wrote. "I sincerely apologize for what you're experiencing and feeling!"

"We hear you loud and clear and are committed to getting this right — and making sure we have a long term solution that provides better reliability and capability," Kattukaran explained. "We have been actively working on major improvements for sometime and will have more to share in the fall."

The acknowledgement comes as Google Nest hardware is starting to show its age. The Nest Hub was last updated in 2021, and the Nest Hub Max hasn't seen a refresh since its launch in 2019. Some Google Home and Nest speakers have gone even longer without any hardware changes, or have been discontinued.

Google launched the Pixel Tablet in 2023 as a hybrid between a smart home manager and a casual Android tablet, but it hasn't been a replacement for the Nest Hub line. It did release a new fourth-generation Nest Learning Thermostat last year, and conversely dropped support for the first two Nest Learning Thermostat models entirely this year.

On top of that, Google is currently undergoing a major transition from classic Assistant to Gemini — an AI-powered voice assistant. Google Assistant has already lost more than 20 features since 2024 as part of the move. No product category is hurt more by these deprecations than Home and Nest, which can't leverage Gemini yet. Meanwhile, Android phones and tablets, Wear OS watches, and ChromeOS devices can all use Gemini over Assistant.

A new post complaining about Home and Nest troubles seemingly pops up on social media every few days, with this one on Reddit garnering nearly 300 comments in three days. Another on Threads from two days ago gained traction as well, and that's just the start.

This is presumably why Google's head of Home and Nest is publicly addressing the customer concerns now. Unfortunately, they'll have to wait until Fall 2025 to get a proper fix — which may include Gemini support for smart speakers and displays, according to rumors.