India's Glance partners with Google Cloud to build consumer GenAI experiences

Indian consumer internet company Glance today said it has partnered with Google's cloud unit Google Cloud as it aims to introduce generative AI to Glance-enabled smartphones worldwide.

Through this collaboration, Glance will leverage Google’s AI models to develop consumer-facing AI applications designed to enhance and enrich user experiences on smartphone lock screens and ambient TV screens.

Glance's market presence

Glance, which delivers AI-powered smart lock screen experiences, currently powers more than 450 million Android-based smartphones worldwide. The company claims to have an active user base of more than 300 million across India, Indonesia, Japan, the United States, and other countries.

The company is now building the next generation of Glance, which aims to turn every user’s lock screen into the centre of their digital experiences, integrating their news, sports, games, entertainment, fashion, and shopping with gen AI to create a ‘personal internet’ for the user. 

Leveraging Google Cloud’s Gemini intelligence

Glance will leverage Google Cloud’s Gemini intelligence capabilities and Imagen’s state-of-the-art image generation capabilities via Vertex AI to power Glance’s next-gen experiences.

One of the first experiences is an immersive, gen AI-enabled commerce feature for the lock screen. This feature, as the company says, allows users to upload a single image (selfie or upload from a gallery), which is then analyzed to infer their interests and preferences. 

Users can then use gen AI to generate personalized images that place them in relevant contexts, transforming their lock screen wallpapers. As users visualize themselves with various products, they can make real-time purchase decisions seamlessly from their lock screens, it said.

Leadership comments

“Our mission at Glance is to inspire users to become the best version of themselves through discovery-led experiences on surfaces powered by AI. We want to be the world’s largest consumer tech platform, reaching a billion screens by 2028, and our partnership with Google Cloud is key,” said Naveen Tewari, Founder & CEO of InMobi & Glance.

“Our combined knowledge, AI capabilities, and expertise uniquely position Glance to deliver the next level of AI-driven experiences for smartphone users, supported by viable business models such as commerce and advertising.” 

Thomas Kurian, CEO of Google Cloud, added, “Generative AI technologies have the power to transform experiences for people around the world, and mobile phones are a key touchpoint. Glance can now harness Google Cloud’s cutting-edge gen AI technologies  to develop groundbreaking applications across commerce, content, and more that will unlock new possibilities for customers.”

The partnership comes as Glance prepares to launch ‘Glance AI,’ a gen AI-powered platform designed to deliver immersive discovery experiences on both smartphone lock screens and TV ambient screens.

To be launched in the U.S. market first, Glance AI aims to supercharge ordinary smartphones into AI phones through experiences that redefine content and commerce.