What’s the buzz?
Google has dropped a fresh set of upgrades for its generative AI duo, Flow and Flow Music. The headline‑grabbers are Gemini Omni support, brand‑new mobile apps for Android and iOS, and a “custom tool” framework that lets power users build their own utilities – think video‑resizer, image‑shader, or even a tiny spreadsheet inside the chat.
Gemini Omni joins the party
Until now, Gemini Omni – Google’s multimodal model that can read text, images, audio and video in one go – was limited to the Gemini API and a handful of Google products. With this update, Flow can now call Gemini Omni under the hood, meaning you can ask a single prompt like “Summarise this 2‑minute YouTube clip and suggest a thumbnail” and the model will ingest the video, understand the audio, read any on‑screen text, and spit out a concise answer.
Mobile apps – finally
Android users can download the Flow app from the Play Store today; iOS users will see it roll out on the App Store this week. Both apps keep the same web‑style UI – a left‑hand sidebar with “Chat”, “Music”, “Tools” tabs – but now they’re native, so you get push notifications, offline caching of your conversation history and faster response times.
DIY custom tools – a sandbox for creators
The most exciting part for developers is the new “Custom Tools” SDK. It’s a low‑code environment where you define input‑output schemas and hook up any public API or local script. Google ships a few templates: a video‑resizer (just drop a URL, set width/height, get a new MP4), an image‑shader (apply vintage, noir, or AI‑style filters), and a simple spreadsheet calculator (enter a table, ask for totals, averages, etc.). Once saved, the tool appears as a button inside your Flow chat – click it, feed it data, and the AI will call your tool behind the scenes.
What does this mean for Indian users?
1. Better language support. Gemini Omni now understands Tamil, Hindi, Bengali and a dozen other Indian languages in video/audio form. You can upload a regional news clip and ask for a summary in your mother tongue.
2. Mobile‑first workflow. Most Indian creators work on their phones. Having a native Flow app means you can edit a short Reel, generate a background music track, and export – all without opening a laptop.
3. Cost‑effective customization. The Custom Tools run on Google’s free tier for up to 5,000 calls per month – enough for a small YouTube channel or a local e‑commerce store to auto‑generate product‑image watermarks.
TamilTech’s take
We’re thrilled about the mobile rollout. In the past, Indian power‑users complained that Flow felt “web‑only” and laggy on 4G. The native apps slash latency to under 2 seconds on a typical 12‑Mbps connection, which is a game‑changer for anyone living in Tier‑2 cities.
However, the custom tool sandbox is still in beta and requires a bit of JSON‑y configuration. For non‑technical folks, the ready‑made templates are handy, but we’d love to see a visual drag‑and‑drop builder – something akin to Zapier but inside Flow.
Another point: Gemini Omni is powerful but also pricey when you go beyond the free quota. Google’s pricing page shows $0.02 per 1,000 tokens for multimodal calls. For a creator who processes 10 minutes of video daily, that’s roughly ₹30‑₹40 a month – acceptable, but worth keeping an eye on.
What to do next?
1. Install the app. Android users go to Play Store, iOS users wait for the App Store link (expected 24‑48 hrs).
2. Try a custom tool. Open Flow → Tools → Create New → Choose “Video Resizer”. Paste a YouTube link, set 720p, hit “Run”. You’ll see the new MP4 appear in the chat.
3. Experiment with Gemini Omni. Upload a regional news clip, ask for a Tamil summary, and compare it with the English version. Notice how the model handles on‑screen captions?
4. Watch your usage. In Flow’s Settings → Usage, you can set a monthly cap and get alerts when you’re near the limit.
Bottom line
Google’s Flow update is more than a UI refresh – it’s an ecosystem push that takes generative AI from the cloud to the palm of your hand, while giving developers (and hobbyists) a sandbox to build niche utilities. For Indian creators, marketers and everyday users, the combination of Gemini Omni’s multimodal muscle and the new mobile experience could shave hours off content workflows. Keep an eye on the custom‑tool marketplace – that’s where the real innovation will surface.
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