Google Assistant's feature set is getting an addition today, as the Mountain View giant announced that the smart digital assistant is getting integration with Tile trackers. With the new integration, users can ask the Assistant to locate or ring their trackers, making it easier to find small objects - or even big ones, if you're good enough at losing things.
For those unaware, Tile trackers are small square-shaped devices that have Bluetooth connectivity. The goal is that you can attach them to any of your personal belongings, and thanks to the Bluetooth connection with your smartphone, users can easily know where a tracked object is. They can also automatically warn the user if the tracker is out of range with the smartphone, so if you leave something behind or someone takes it, you'll get alerted. Tile trackers are typically sold as separate devices, but they can be integrated, something HP has recently done with the Elite Dragonfly.
Tile integration with the Assistant could be Google's way to prepare for the rumored launch of Apple's own trackers, which may be called AirTags. Given the deep integration Apple devices tend to have between each other, it seems logical that a similar feature would be available on Apple's ecosystem, and it may be good for Google to pre-empt that.
To set up Tile integration, you'll need to head into the Google Home app to get started. Once you've set it up, you can make Tile-related queries to any Assistant-enable device, including Google's Nest family.
