Made by Google Podcast

In the season finale of the Made by Google Podcast, Rachid Finge takes questions from Pixel Superfans about the brand new Pixel Fold to Product Manager George Hwang. Find out what it's like for the team behind Google's first foldable phone to wait for the first product reviews to come out, and why the launch of a device marks a beginning, not an end. The Made by Google Podcast will return for another season later in 2023. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Fitbit is best known for tracking your activity, workouts, heart rate, and sleep, but Fitbit also has a long history in stress management. In this episode of the Made by Google Podcast, Rachid Finge talks to some of the creators of Body Response, one of the most impressive stress managing features that Fitbit has to offer. Elena Perez, Sammy Abdel-Ghaffar, and Isaac Galatzer-Levy discuss how Body Response came to be, what it measures, and how it can help Fitbit users live a more mindful life. They also explore ways in which Fitbit can aid in mental well-being.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

We’ve talked about the new devices launched at this year’s I/O - now it’s time to talk about apps! Including the brand new Home Panel that just launched on Pixel devices, including the brand new Pixel Tablet and Pixel Fold.  Google Home’s director of product Anish Kattukaran joins us to discuss all the helpful and easy ways the newly redesigned Google Home app creates the best place to set up, control and automate your smart home. Learn more here: https://store.google.com/intl/en/ideas/articles/google-home-app-updates Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Our latest Feature Drop is here and it’s jam-packed with health and safety updates for your Pixel and Fitbit devices. Updates begin rolling out to devices today and will continue over the next few weeks. In this episode, host Rachid Finge welcomes back Product Director, Shenaz Zack to explain exactly what are feature drops and how some of our latest updates will help keep you safe, healthy and more. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Google’s Pixel Essentials team aims to develop helpful app experiences that improve everyday tasks and find ways to make things simpler, easier, and more thoughtfully designed.  In this episode, host Rachid Finges speaks with product manager Kristi Bradford to discuss the story behind the Clock, Calculator and Recorder app on your Pixel. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Google's Industrial Design team has been hard at work lately, combining fine arts with innovative technology to design the latest additions to the Pixel portfolio.  In this episode, host Rachid Finge sits down with three of Google's expert designers - Ivy Ross, Isabellele Olsson, and Claude Zellweger -  for a closer look at how the designs of the Pixel 7a, Fold, and Tablet came to be. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Earlier this month, we kicked off Season 3 with the announcement of the expanded Pixel product lineup at Google I/O. Today, host Rachid Finge zooms in on Android software powering the larger form factor of two of those devices: Pixel Fold and Pixel Tablet. Experts Allen Huang and Andrea Zvinakis join Rachid to discuss how they’re helping bring a better Android experience to large screen devices, including changes to Android’s OS design and apps that you use everyday.  Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In with the new! To kick off the Season 3 of the Made By Google podcast, host Rachid Finge covers the three new Pixel devices just announced at Google I/O: Pixel 7a, Pixel Fold and Pixel Tablet. Experts on each addition to the Pixel portfolio - product managers George Hwang, Justin Savich and Chris Chan - join Rachid to discuss the innovative features and designs, how they came to be and how the latest Google technology powers them.  Check out this article on the design philosophy behind these devices - we’ll be sure to invite the team to a future episode. https://store.google.com/intl/en/ideas/articles/pixel-fold-and-tablet-design/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In this final episode of season two, Google Pixel Product Director and Precious Pixel Perfectionist Shenaz Zack joins us to talk about how her team transforms day-to-day problems into helpful experiences. In conversation with our host, Rachid Finge, they discuss her memories from the first Pixel launch, her favourite features of the Pixel phone, and how her team finds user problems to solve. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In today’s episode of the Made By Google Podcast, Rachid speaks with Jonathan Eccles, Group Product Manager for the Phone by Google app, about how AI can improve a 150 year old product, the telephone call. The Phone By Google app makes phone calls better by screening out spam calls, helping you hear the other person more clearly (if you’re using a Pixel 7 or 7 Pro with Clear Calling turned on), and can have Google Assistant answer calls for you in many countries. Jonathan and Rachid discuss these features and more, as well as what could be next for the app. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

On this Made By Google podcast episode, Rachid talks to Product Managers Edward Shi and Paras Unadkat about one of the Pixel Watch's newest features: fall detection. They discuss how fall detection works, how it balances safety with helpfulness, and how they leveraged a bit of Hollywood magic to overcome real-world testing challenges. Learn more: https://store.google.com/intl/en/ideas/articles/reach-new-years-goals-with-google-pixel-watch/ Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In today’s episode of the Made By Google Podcast, Rachid speaks with Eugene Liderman, Director of Android Security Strategy, about the security features that keep Pixel and other Android devices safe.  They go through the layers of security that protect users from phishing attempts and malware, including Messages by Google, Safe Browsing, and Play Protect, and also emphasize the importance of checking your security & privacy settings and taking action on red and amber warnings (something Rachid had yet to do at the time of recording 😬). Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Why is it important to accurately render skin tone in photographs? And how can technology ensure that images are done with dignity and accurately represent all individuals? This week’s guest, Florian Koenigsberger, Product Manager for Pixel and lead for Real Tone, answers these questions and more in a wide-ranging discussion with Rachid about Real Tone, a collection of improvements for Pixel Camera and Google Photos that works to represent people of color more equitably, so that everyone feels seen, no matter their skin tone. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In today’s episode, we go deep on sleep. Rachid is joined by Megan Jones Bell, Google’s Clinical Director, Consumer and Mental Health, and Conor Heneghan, Fitbit’s Senior Staff Research Scientist. They describe how Pixel Watch and Fitbit use your movements and heart rate, along with machine learning algorithms, to estimate what stage of sleep you’re in, and how you can use this information to gain insight into your sleep habits.  And they discuss good 'sleep hygiene' habits, such as reducing caffeine intake and creating a wind-down routine before bed, to help create the most restful environment for restorative slumber. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Listen up! And around! On this Made By Google Podcast episode, host Rachid Finge speaks about spatial audio with Lu Silverstein, Senior Product Manager for Pixel Audio Experiences.  Spatial audio delivers an immersive audio experience – so it sounds like the helicopter is above you while you're watching a movie or the zombie is behind you whilst playing a video game. Lu describes how spatial audio uses algorithms to simulate positions in space and essentially trick your brain, what kinds of content work with spatial audio, and how Pixel Buds Pro adds head tracking to create an even more dynamic experience. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Ever wanted to revive an old, grainy photo from a trip you took years ago? Or remove a photobomber from an otherwise great photo? With #FixedOnPixel editing features Photo Unblur and Magic Eraser, you can. In this first episode of season 2 of the Made By Google Podcast, host Rachid Finge goes in-depth with Zachary Senzer, Senior Product Manager on Google Photos. They talk about how Photo Unblur and Magic Eraser use machine learning to make those near-perfect shots ready to post, and how computational photography makes it possible for everyone to take amazing pictures. Check out our #FixedOnPixel Super Bowl ad here: https://youtu.be/zkHdpA-drz0 Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

One in seven people has a disability. And as the global population gets older, that number is going up – and products that aren’t built with accessibility in mind can exclude a lot of people. In the final episode of season 1 of our Made by Google Podcast, Rachid Finge speaks with Android Group Product Manager Vince Wu about what it means to design and build for everyone. They discuss many useful accessibility features, including Guided Frame, a new feature on Pixel 7 that helps people with vision impairments take selfies, and Vince shares his top tips for getting the most out of your device.

In the penultimate episode of season one of the Made By Google Podcast, host Rachid Finge speaks with Directors of Product Management Karen Yao and Anish Kattukaran about Google’s vision for the smart (or should we say helpful) home. They discuss how the smart home can be helpful today (Anish’s day starts with the blinds opening, soft music playing, and the kettle heating up for tea 🌅🎶☕) and how we’re entering a new era built on openness and collaboration, thanks to a new industry standard that truly Matters.

Have you ever wondered how your smartwatch tracks your heartbeat? Or how it scores your sleep? In this episode of our Made by Google podcast, host Rachid Finge gets into the details of Fitbit and Pixel Watch with product manager DeCarlos Love. DeCarlos explains the science behind biometric tracking, how the team turns data into insights, and how his own passion for fitness informs his work. Can you believe we've already made it to episode 6? Just two more to go before our first season is complete!

Speech! In episode 5 of our Made by Google podcast, Nino Tasca, Director of Product Management for Google Speech, joins host Rachid Finge to talk about talking. Nino and Rachid discuss how devices understand what you say, how products like Google Assistant talk to you, and how improved speech recognition makes Pixel 7's Assistant voice typing and Recorder app better than ever before.