Awkward! Google Gemini fails twice during a live demo

The demo spirits were not on Google's side.
By Elena Cavender  on 
A phone screen open to the Gemini request and the presenter.
The botched demo. Credit: Screenshot: Google

Google's AI-powered assistant, Gemini, is a bit of a diva.

During Tuesday's Made by Google event, Gemini AI's live demo failed twice in a row, resulting in the presenter, Dave Citron, saying, "Let's see the demo spirits are with us today." On the third attempt, Gemini completed the task at hand: checking his calendar to see if he's free for Sabrina Carpenter's upcoming show in San Francisco.

The live demo aimed to demonstrate Gemini's new capabilities on Android to connect with Google Calendar, Tasks, and Keep.

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Before the demo failed, Citron clearly stated, "All the demos we are doing today are live," with a smile. He took a photo of a Sabrina Carpenter poster held up by co-presenter Jess Carpenter and asked Gemini, "Check my calendar and see if I'm free when she's coming to San Francisco this year." But the Gemini briefly loaded and then reset. Citron tried again with the same result. It's only when he pulled out a different device and tried for the third time that Gemini informed him of his availability to see the "Espresso" singer live. It took Gemini 20 seconds to determine he didn't have anything on his schedule.

After, he asked for a reminder to be set to check for tickets later today and to add espresso to his shopping lists, both of which Gemini completed without incident.

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Elena Cavender

Elena is a tech reporter and the resident Gen Z expert at Mashable. She covers TikTok and digital trends. She recently graduated from UC Berkeley with a BA in American History. Email her at [email protected] or follow her @ecaviar_.


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