Google is making Gemini Live more useful for blind and low-vision users with Guided Vision, a new accessibility feature that provides real-time visual assistance through an Android phone’s camera.

Guided Vision lets users share their camera during a Gemini Live conversation and hear descriptions of what is in front of them. They can ask follow-up questions about what Gemini sees, while the AI can also provide spoken instructions to help reposition the camera when it is not capturing the right view. Google launched the feature on October 1 across compatible Android devices.

The feature was built in collaboration with the blind and low-vision community. Google partnered with Aira to train Gemini Live using tens of thousands of hours of visual interpretation data, while more than 1,000 members of Aira’s Trusted Tester network helped test and refine the experience across everyday situations. Aira specialists also worked with Google on its safety guardrails.

How Guided Vision works in Gemini Live

Guided Vision is designed to make camera-based conversations more useful when a user cannot easily see what the phone is pointing at.

After sharing the camera in Gemini Live, users can ask Gemini about their surroundings or a specific object. If the camera is pointed too high, too close, or slightly off to the side, Gemini can respond with spoken instructions such as asking the user to pan right, tilt the phone downward, or step back.

That means the user does not necessarily have to know exactly how to frame something before asking Gemini about it. The AI can help get the camera into a position where it has enough visual context to respond.

What Guided Vision can help with

Google highlights several everyday uses for Guided Vision.

It can read fine print and complex text, including nutrition labels, appliance controls and printed restaurant menus. It can also help users locate nearby objects, such as a dropped earbud or an item inside a crowded kitchen cabinet.

Users can ask Gemini about visual details such as colors, patterns and shapes. For example, they could ask about the color of a jacket or whether the pattern on one piece of clothing matches another.

Guided Vision can also provide broader descriptions of unfamiliar rooms, spaces and objects arranged on a table. Google says the feature supports conversations in multiple languages and was tested with blind and low-vision communities in countries including India, Brazil, Singapore, Indonesia and Japan.

Although Google designed Guided Vision with blind and low-vision users in mind, the company says it can also provide practical assistance to older adults, people with low literacy, or anyone who needs to read fine print in poor lighting.

How to use Guided Vision on Android

Users can enable Guided Vision from the Gemini mobile app by opening their profile settings and turning on “Use Guided Vision in Live.” They can then start a Gemini Live session and share their camera.

Android also provides accessibility shortcuts for Guided Vision. Users can configure the feature under Settings > Accessibility > Vision assistance > Guided Vision and launch it through the floating accessibility button, a two-finger swipe or both volume keys.

People using Google TalkBack can open the TalkBack menu with a three-finger tap and select Guided Vision directly.

Guided Vision is not a navigation tool

There is an important limitation to keep in mind. Google says Guided Vision is an assistive utility and, like other generative AI systems, can make mistakes.

It is not a medical device, mobility aid or replacement for a white cane. Google also says Guided Vision should not be used for navigation, safe-travel guidance or obstacle detection. Users should continue relying on established mobility aids and safe-travel practices when moving through physical environments.

Android availability

Guided Vision is now available on Android devices running Android 9 or later in regions and languages where Gemini Live is supported. Google recommends updating the Gemini app and Android system software to the latest versions before using the feature.

With Guided Vision, Google is extending Gemini Live beyond simply answering questions about what a camera sees. Its ability to provide spoken descriptions while also helping users reposition the camera gives the feature a more deliberate accessibility focus—and makes Gemini Live more practical for everyday visual tasks.