Google is informing headphone users with Assistant support that the AI helper will lose its "touch-and-hold" function for notifications and the ability to reply. A post states users will soon have to say "Hey Google" aloud in order for the AI to read your notifications.

A change that initially affected Pixel Buds in September 2024, removing the touch-and-hold gesture for reading notifications, now seems to be rolling out to other Google Assistant-enabled earbuds and headphones.

Following Pixel Buds Pro in September, Google Assistant headphones will “no longer automatically read unread notifications.”