Google’s Phone App Prepares for Full-Scale “AI Reply” Rollout in Japan: App Teardown

AI

📝 Key Points of This Article

• The “Call Screen” feature, powered by Gemini, may soon see a full-scale rollout in Japan as “AI Reply.”
• Analysis of the Android “Google Phone” app v215 update files reveals the addition of resource code for region-specific “Call Screen” phrases tailored for the Japanese market.
• The new Japanese-specific phrases include prompts such as “Is this urgent?”, “Could you please tell me more about your request?”, and “Could you please tell me your name for confirmation?”, along with an “AI Reply” label.

The “Google Phone” app, the default dialer for Google Pixel devices, features “Call Screen,” which allows an AI to answer calls and inquire about the caller’s purpose on the user’s behalf.

While this “Call Screen” feature has been available in Japan since June 2021, it has remained based on the “Google Assistant” technology. In contrast, the US and other English-speaking regions have already transitioned to the Google AI “Gemini (Gemini Nano)”-based system. However, it appears that the “Gemini”-based “Call Screen” feature, branded as “AI Reply,” may finally see a full-scale rollout in Japan.

Preparations for the full-scale launch of “AI Reply” in Japan have been uncovered through “app analysis.”

Analysis of the app files from the Android “Google Phone” app v215 update, released on Friday, March 27, 2026, confirmed that resource code related to region-specific “Call Screen” phrases for the Japanese environment has been added.

<string name="ask_call_priority_ja">お急ぎのご用件ですか？</string>
<string name="ask_call_topic_ja">詳しいご用件をお話しください。</string>
<string name="ask_if_urgent_from_contact_label_japan_only">AIで応答</string>
<string name="ask_who_is_calling_ja">確認のため、お名前をお聞かせください</string>

The newly identified Japanese-specific “Call Screen” phrases include prompts like “Is this urgent?”, “Could you please tell me more about your request?”, and “Could you please tell me your name for confirmation?” along with an “AI Reply” label. This suggests that the feature may evolve to allow the AI (Gemini) to provide more accurate responses based on the caller’s replies to these specific prompts.

While the term “AI Reply” is already seen in some contexts within the Japanese version of “Call Screen,” the current experience is inconsistent, with both “Call Screen” and “AI Reply” terminology appearing interchangeably. It is highly likely that these will soon be unified under the “AI Reply” branding.

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