Pixel 9 Pro buyers may receive a free $240 Google One subscription with Gemini Advanced

Google has announced that its Pixel 9 series will launch on August 13 this year, breaking away from its traditional October release schedule. This move is widely seen as a strategic play to outshine Apple’s launch of Apple Intelligence with the iPhone 16 series in September.

While we already anticipate that Google will heavily promote its AI features on the Pixel 9 series to lure customers, 9to5Google has discovered compelling evidence within the APK code of the Google app beta (version 15.28) that suggests Google plans to bundle a one-year subscription to Gemini Advanced with the Pro Pixels.

Here’s the string that 9to5Google found in the code:

“Your Pixel Pro gives you access to a 1-year subscription to Gemini Advanced, our most capable AI model with priority access to new features, at no cost to you.”

Notably, the mention of Pixel Pro could refer to three different phones this year, namely the Pixel 9 Pro, the Pixel 9 Pro XL, and the Pixel 9 Pro Fold.

Gemini Advanced offers access to Google’s most powerful AI model and currently commands a premium price of $20 per month. This includes a 2TB Google One plan, which itself costs $10 per month without Gemini Advanced. This essentially means that Pixel 9 Pro buyers will get Gemini Advanced features and 2TB of storage at no extra cost, effectively saving $240 compared to buying the subscription separately.

Another string in the code mentioning the “P9” series suggests that the standard Pixel 9 might not be left out of the AI bonanza. While not as generous as the Pixel 9 Pro’s offer, this string indicates that the standard Pixel 9 could come with a six-month trial of Gemini Advanced. This would still allow users to experience the power of Gemini Advanced and potentially entice them to upgrade to a full subscription in the future or upsell to a Pixel 9 Pro instead.