New Bixby in One UI 8.5 lets you control your Galaxy phone in plain English

Samsung has given Bixby a significant makeover in One UI 8.5, transforming it from a voice assistant into a full-fledged conversational device agent. The update, currently in beta, is rolling out in select markets including India, the US, the UK, Germany, South Korea, and Poland.

The core idea is simple: you shouldn't have to know where a setting lives to change it. With the new Bixby, you can say something like "I don't want my screen to time out while I'm looking at it," and it will find and toggle the right setting on its own—no menu-diving required.

Bixby now understands what you mean, not just what you say

Samsung's Won-Joon Choi, COO of the MX Business, framed the update as a natural extension of the company's AI phone ambitions since 2024. The focus is on reducing friction—Bixby can now interpret the intent behind a request, not just match keywords.

It also works the other way around. If your screen keeps turning on in your pocket, you can ask Bixby why that's happening, and it will pull up relevant settings like Accidental Touch Protection and let you act on them right there.

No more jumping to a browser for quick web searches

The other big addition is real-time web search baked directly into Bixby's interface. Ask it to find kid-friendly hotels with swimming pools in Seoul, and the results show up without bouncing you to a browser. It keeps the experience contained and a bit more useful for on-the-go queries.