Samsung is adding Perplexity to Galaxy AI on S26 series: What to expect

Perplexity will get its own wake phrase and app integrations, joining Google Gemini in Samsung's Galaxy AI ecosystem as the company readies its February 25 Unpacked event

Samsung is set to host its first Galaxy Unpacked event of 2026 on February 25, where the South Korean electronics maker is expected to launch its next-generation Galaxy S26 series flagship smartphones. Ahead of the event, Samsung has unveiled several features that will be debuting on the upcoming smartphones, such as “Zero-Peeking Privacy”, a unified Galaxy Camera experience, and more. Next in line is the integration of Perplexity AI into the Galaxy AI suite.

 

In a press release, Samsung announced that it is introducing Perplexity as an additional AI agent on “upcoming flagship Galaxy devices.” Perplexity on these flagships, likely the Galaxy S26 series, will have its own wake phrase and will be integrated into several native Galaxy apps.

Samsung Galaxy Unpacked: Event details

• Date: February 25
• Location: San Francisco
• Time: 11:30 pm IST
• Livestream: Samsung Newsroom and Samsung YouTube channel

Multi-agent ecosystem in Galaxy AI: Details

Samsung announced that, besides Google Gemini’s integration into Galaxy AI, users will be able to use Perplexity as an additional AI agent on its upcoming flagship devices, likely the Galaxy S26 series. Users will be able to access Perplexity through a dedicated voice wake phrase, “Hey Plex,” or by long-pressing the side button. Currently, this action brings up Google Gemini AI by default. Samsung also said that Perplexity on Galaxy phones will be able to work across several native apps such as Samsung Notes, Clock, Gallery, Reminder and Calendar, as well as select third-party apps.

Besides adding Perplexity to the Galaxy AI ecosystem, Samsung is also revamping its own voice assistant, Bixby. The redesigned Bixby assistant is currently in beta testing with the One UI 8.5 version, which will likely debut on the Galaxy S26 series. Samsung is positioning Bixby as a more conversational “device agent” that can understand natural language and handle phone settings. According to an example shared by the company, if a user says something like, “I don’t want the screen to time out while I’m still looking at it,” Bixby understands the request and immediately turns on the ‘Keep Screen on While Viewing’ setting.

 

Beyond device controls, Samsung is also expanding Bixby’s reach to the web. The revamped version can fetch live information directly inside its own interface, instead of pushing users into a browser.

Samsung Galaxy S26 series: What to expect

The Samsung Galaxy S26 series is expected to include three models: Galaxy S26, Galaxy S26 Plus, and Galaxy S26 Ultra. Ahead of the anticipated launch, Samsung has revealed a few features that could debut with the new devices. These include:

 

• Privacy Display: The Galaxy S26 series will get a new privacy feature that adds an extra visibility control layer to its phone interface, aimed at limiting what nearby people can see when a device is used in public. Based on teasers shared by Samsung, users will be able to selectively hide sensitive elements such as messages, password fields, or notification previews. Meanwhile, a “Zero-Peeking Privacy” mode would let users hide the whole screen at once.
• Image editing with text prompts: In another teaser, Samsung announced that users will soon be able to describe what changes they want in an image using a text prompt. The AI system will understand the instructions and apply several edits at once, reducing the need to manually adjust each setting.

Galaxy S26 Ultra: Expected specifications

A report by 9To5Google has stated that several specifications of the Galaxy S26 Ultra have surfaced online. According to the report, this year’s Ultra model will pack a 5,000mAh battery, the same as its predecessor. As per the report, possible marketing materials that have surfaced online suggest that the Galaxy S26 Ultra will offer an on-battery time of up to 31 hours. Meanwhile, the device is said to charge up to 75 per cent in 30 minutes.

The camera configuration is also expected to remain the same as the Galaxy S25 Ultra, with the report stating that the Galaxy S26 Ultra will feature a 200MP main camera, a 50MP ultra-wide, a 50MP telephoto with 5x optical zoom, and a 10MP 3x telephoto camera at the back. While the camera specifications are expected to remain unchanged, the smartphone may get a redesigned camera housing with a Galaxy Z Fold-style camera island.

 

Powering the Galaxy S26 Ultra will likely be the latest Qualcomm Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 for Galaxy chip.

Galaxy S26 and Galaxy S26 Plus: Expected specifications

Similar to the Galaxy S26 Ultra, the Galaxy S26 and Galaxy S26 Plus models are likely to feature a refreshed camera module, while the rest of the design remains largely in line with last year’s models.

 

Both phones are expected to run either the Snapdragon 8 Elite Gen 5 or Samsung’s Exynos 2600 chipset, depending on the region. They are expected to feature a 50MP main camera, a 12MP ultra-wide lens, and a 10MP telephoto sensor with 3x optical zoom and OIS. The S26 Plus may come with a 6.7-inch flat LTPO M14 AMOLED display with a 120Hz adaptive refresh rate and a 4,900mAh battery, while the standard S26 could offer a 6.3-inch screen and a 4,300mAh battery.