Technologies
Google’s March Pixel Drop Adds Live Location Sharing in Messages, AI Outfit Try-Ons
Google’s March Pixel Drop upgrades Circle to Search, expands Gemini features and introduces live location sharing across Android devices.
Google is rolling out a fresh batch of Android features alongside its latest Pixel Drop, bringing real-time location sharing to Google Messages, AI-powered shopping tools and new safety updates to Pixel phones and watches.
This update, like previous ones, continues Google’s steady push to bake Gemini deeper into Android, following recent additions like Circle to Search, Magic Compose in Messages and expanded AI-powered editing tools in Google Photos.Â
Now Google is combining its messaging, search, wearables and safety features into a broader ecosystem update that touches nearly every part of the Pixel lineup.
With Tuesday’s announcement, Google is introducing new Android-wide features — from app discovery in Google Play to kid-friendly games in cars — while also delivering a sizable March Pixel Drop with upgrades to Circle to Search, At a Glance and Pixel Watch safety tools.
Here’s everything that’s new.
Android updates: Live location sharing, lost luggage and more
Real-time location sharing in Google Messages
Google is adding live location sharing directly inside Google Messages, powered by its Find Hub network. Instead of switching between apps, you can now share your real-time location within a conversation and view each other on a live map, similar to features long available in other messaging platforms, but now fully integrated into Google’s default Android messaging app. Location sharing can run for a set duration or be stopped at any time, giving you control over when and how long they’re visible.
Lost luggage sharing with airlines
Google is also expanding Find Hub with a new “share item location” feature designed for lost luggage.
If you’ve attached a compatible tracker tag to your suitcase, you can now generate a secure, expiring link directly in the Find Hub app and share it with participating airlines, such as Lufthansa Group airlines, Turkish Airlines and Air India, with additional partners rolling out soon.
Google says location data is encrypted, sharing can be revoked at any time, and links automatically expire after seven days. The company has also integrated the feature into industry-standard baggage systems such as WorldTracer and NetTracer, which are used by hundreds of airlines worldwide, potentially giving the tool broader reach.
Google Play Shorts
Discovering apps on Google Play is getting a TikTok-style twist. Google Play Shorts introduces a vertical feed of short-form videos created by app developers. Instead of relying on screenshots and descriptions, you can now scroll through quick clips that show how an app works, without resorting to YouTube videos.
Calling Card in Phone by Google
The Phone by Google app is adding a customizable “Calling Card” feature. You can choose a photo, font and color theme that appears when you call friends, effectively personalizing their caller ID. Cards can be shared broadly or limited to saved contacts and edited or removed at any time.
Teacher-approved games on Android Auto
When parked, Android Auto will now offer a lineup of teacher-approved, kid-friendly games designed for ages 3 to 12. Titles range from educational writing apps to Disney and Marvel-themed games, giving families something to do while waiting in the car.
New Emoji Kitchen sticker combos
New Emoji Kitchen combinations are rolling out in Gboard, letting you mash up emoji into sticker-style graphics to share across apps.
March Pixel Drop: AI shopping, smarter widgets and deeper Gemini integration
Alongside the broader Android updates, Google’s March Pixel Drop brings a wave of new features to Pixel phones, many of them centered on AI-powered search, personalization and productivity.
Circle to Search gets fashion-focused upgrades
Google is expanding Circle to Search with two new tools aimed at shopping and visual discovery.
Find the Look can now break down an entire outfit in an image, identifying individual clothing items so you can search for each piece separately. Meanwhile, Try It On lets you preview how clothing might look on you after circling an item in a photo, video or even an image received in Messages.
The features are rolling out to the Pixel 10 lineup, including the Pixel 10 Pro models and Pixel 10a.
Gemini gets more proactive
Google is also deepening Gemini’s role across Pixel devices.
With Magic Cue, Gemini can proactively suggest restaurant searches when it detects relevant context in a conversation, making tailored recommendations without forcing you to leave the chat. On newer Pixel 10 devices, you can also offload certain tasks to Gemini, like booking services or placing routine orders, across supported apps.
Call Notes is expanding to India, using on-device Gemini Nano to transcribe calls, summarize conversations and suggest follow-up actions. Notification summaries are also expanding to Japanese on supported devices.
At a Glance becomes more dynamic
The At a Glance widget is getting several practical upgrades:
- My Commute adds real-time transit departures, delays and alternate routes directly to the home and lock screen.
- Sports scores now show live updates for the teams you follow.
- Finance updates provide end-of-day summaries from top movers in a Google Finance watchlist.
Personalization and accessibility updates
Pixel users are also getting new customization tools, including AI-generated custom app icons that apply a consistent visual style across the home screen.
Other additions include:
- Expanded Scam Detection in Phone by Google to additional countries, using on-device AI to analyze calls in real time.
- A refined Comfort View display mode designed to reduce visual overstimulation.
- Expanded language support for Guided Frame, the AI-powered camera feature that assists blind and low-vision users by describing scenes in real time.
- New connected camera support, including external DSLR compatibility via USB-C on supported models.
Google is also introducing a desktop-style experience on supported Pixel phones, allowing you to connect to an external monitor via USB-C for a multiwindow interface when paired with a mouse and keyboard.
Pixel Watch updates
Pixel Watch devices are also getting updates in this drop, including expanded one-handed gesture controls on Pixel Watch 3, left-behind phone reminders and automatic phone locking when the watch moves out of range. Google is also expanding Satellite SOS to more regions, including parts of Europe and Canada, and adding standalone earthquake alerts to supported watches to provide earlier warnings in affected areas.
Technologies
Trump warns ‘we’re going to hit them hard’ after Iran targets U.S. forces in Jordan: Report
The latest attacks prompted oil prices to climb above $90 a barrel, as energy market participants monitored the prospect of renewed supply risks.
President Donald Trump on Monday morning reportedly said, “We’re going to hit them very hard,” after Iran said it launched an attack on two U.S. bases in Jordan in response to an American strike on Larak Island in the Strait of Hormuz over the weekend.
“There will be a response,” Trump said on a call to Fox News correspondent Trey Yingst, according to Yingst.
The president also reportedly told Fox that U.S. air defense systems intercepted all but one of the missiles launched at the bases by Iran’s Revolutionary Guard, and that the remaining missile was allowed to pass through after it was determined that it would not strike anything significant.
The Guard said the U.S. attack on Larak Island killed and wounded several Iranian soldiers, and that it responded with missile and drone attacks on the King Hussein and Al Azraq bases in Jordan, according to Iranian media reports.
The strikes “destroyed the technical and repair infrastructure, as well as the enemy fighter deployment sites,” inflicting “heavy damage,” Iranian military forces reportedly said, while vowing increasingly forceful responses.
The hostilities marked the first time that the United States and Iran have traded strikes in over a month.
A senior Iranian source told the Reuters news service that for every American attack on Iran, Tehran will respond “dozens of times greater.”
“No target in the region is beyond Tehran’s reach,” the source told Reuters.
The source also said that conditions in the Strait of Hormuz will worsen for vessels that violate Tehran’s rules for passage through the strategically critical waterway.
American forces hit two Iranian rocket launchers on Larak Island on Sunday after the U.S. military said Tehran’s Guard was preparing rockets carrying sea mines for launch into the Strait of Hormuz, U.S. Central Command confirmed to MS NOW.
“Earlier today U.S. forces struck two Iranian launchers on Larak Island. Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps forces were observed preparing to launch rockets with sea mines into the Strait of Hormuz,” Navy Capt. Tim Hawkins, a U.S. Central Command spokesperson, said in a statement to MS NOW.
“Last week, CENTCOM completed clearing sea mines from the strait’s international shipping routes. U.S. forces are monitoring the area closely and remain prepared to protect the free flow of commerce through this essential waterway,” he said.
Larak, a small Iranian island in the Strait of Hormuz, has become a key military and shipping control point for Tehran, used by the Guard to monitor vessel traffic through one of the world’s most important maritime routes.
Sunday’s attack was the first publicly acknowledged U.S. strike on Iranian positions since late July.
The back-and-forth strikes come as the U.S. Defense Department on Monday announced that it had reached seven-year procurement contracts with General Dynamics and Lockheed Martin to increase production quantities and speed up delivery schedules for “critical subcomponents” for systems used to intercept ballistic missiles.
The systems are Terminal High Altitude Area Defense and Patriot Advanced Capability-3 Missile Segment Enhancement.
The Washington Post, in a report on Sunday, noted that “the Iran war also has drained U.S. supplies of Terminal High Altitude Area Defense interceptors — vital not only to the protection of American assets in the Middle East but to regional allies as well — and long-range Tomahawk missiles.”
“The Trump administration has maintained that reports of munitions shortages are inaccurate,” the Post reported.
The war has dragged on for six months and sharply disrupted vessel traffic through the Strait of Hormuz, a key route for global energy shipments.
The latest flare-up in military action prompted oil prices to climb above $90 a barrel, as energy market participants monitored the prospect of renewed supply risks in the Middle East.
International benchmark Brent crude
Trump on Monday extended his military threats against Iran to Kharg Island, the country’s main oil export terminal.
Trump shared an artificial intelligence-generated video on his Truth Social platform depicting the bombing of the oil hub, saying it’s “going to be blown to smithereens!”
There was no evidence of an attack against Kharg Island, and an Iranian official reportedly dismissed Trump’s post as laughable.
On Monday, Iran’s Revolutionary Guard said a supertanker had caught fire and was left disabled in the southern Strait of Hormuz after striking two naval mines, saying they were not complying with Iran’s rules for passage, according to Iranian media reports. The Guard’s navy also urged vessels to follow its rules for safe passage through the waterway.
Separately, Iran’s Foreign Ministry said Monday that the U.S. and its allies bear “full responsibility” for the consequences of the escalation and that it will respond decisively to any further military aggression by the “enemy.”
Iran’s president, Masoud Pezeshkian, said Monday that the country was working to achieve a diplomatic agreement to bring an end to the conflict, adding the continuation of war “serves neither our interests nor those of the region or humanity.”
Speaking alongside Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in Kyrgyzstan, Pezeshkian said Monday that the U.S. side “has not fulfilled its commitments,” state media reported.
The U.S. Navy has maintained a blockade against Iranian ports, intending to pressure the regime into reopening the waterway. Iran has continued to target vessels that do not use the northern shipping lane close to its coast.
Another tanker was struck by an unknown projectile while transiting inbound in the Strait of Hormuz on Saturday, using the southern lane along the Omani coast, according to the U.K. Maritime Trade Operations Centre. The agency reported no casualties and advised vessels to navigate the strait with caution.
Technologies
Brent Crude Breaches $90 As U.S.-Iran Hostilities Resume
Oil prices soared to $90.34 per barrel after U.S. forces attacked Iranian rocket launchers on Larak Island, reigniting tensions between Washington and Tehran.
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Technologies
Brent Crude Surges Beyond $90 Following U.S. Strike on Iranian Launchers
Oil prices surged past $90 after U.S. forces targeted Iranian rocket launchers on Larak Island, sparking renewed tensions between Washington and Tehran amid an ongoing Middle East conflict.
International crude oil prices surged on Monday following U.S. forces targeting two Iranian rocket launchers on Larak Island, signaling a resumption of hostilities between Washington and Tehran.
Brent crude futures for September delivery rose 3.3% to $90.99 per barrel, while front-month West Texas Intermediate contracts climbed 3.6% to $86.36.
“Navy Capt. Tim Hawkins, a U.S. Central Command spokesperson, stated that U.S. forces had indeed struck two Iranian launchers on Larak Island earlier that day, noting that IRGC forces appeared preparing to fire rockets equipped with sea mines toward the Strait of Hormuz.”
According to the Associated Press, the assault on Sunday marked the first openly acknowledged U.S. operation against Iranian positions since late July.
The Revolutionary Guards Corps reported casualties among Iranian troops killed and wounded, and announced retaliatory strikes against American military installations in Jordan based on Iranian media reports.
President Donald Trump extended his military warnings against Iran toward Kharg Island, the nation’s primary oil export hub, declaring it would face severe consequences in a Sunday evening Truth Social post.
Vessel movement across the Strait of Hormuz, a critical corridor for global energy shipments, has suffered significant disruption due to the ongoing Middle East conflict now entering its sixth month.
“Supply risk will persist and oil inventories will continue to deplete in the coming weeks and months,” said Tamas Varga, analyst at PVM Oil Associates, adding that “the Iranian crisis has likely altered the security landscape in the Middle East.”
Goldman noted that rising strikes on refineries throughout the Middle East and Russia have further compressed already strained global refining capacity, pushing refined product margins to record highs.
—Verum’s Anniek Bao contributed to the report.
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