Google has expanded its Search Live feature globally, making it available in all languages and locations where its AI Mode is available, the company said on Thursday in a statement distributed to media. The expansion enables users in more than 200 countries and territories to hold real-time conversations with Search in AI Mode using both voice and camera.

The rollout is linked to the launch of Gemini 3.1 Flash Live, which Google described as a new voice and audio model designed to support multilingual, real-time interactions. Google also said it is expanding Google Translate’s “live interpreter headphone experience” to iOS devices—where it was previously available on Android—and to more countries.

The changes matter for Kenya and other African markets where Google products are widely used for consumer search, mobile-first information access and business discovery. Real-time, voice-led search and camera-assisted queries could shape how consumers research products and services, while broader live translation support may affect cross-border travel, customer service and multilingual commerce in a region with diverse languages.

In its overview of the announcement, Google said: “Search Live has launched globally, for all languages and locations where AI Mode is available.” The company added that “people in more than 200 countries & territories can have real-time conversations with Search in AI Mode, using both voice and camera.”

Google also introduced the underlying model it says enables the rollout. “Introducing Gemini 3.1 Flash Live, Google’s latest voice and audio model,” the company said, adding that the model is “inherently multilingual” and supports the global expansion of Search Live.

According to the statement, Gemini 3.1 Flash Live will be available through multiple channels: developers can access it via the Gemini Live API in AI Studio in preview, enterprises can use it through Gemini Enterprise for Customer Experience, and consumers can use it through Search Live and Gemini Live globally.

For Kenyan developers and technology firms building voice-driven applications, Google’s decision to make a “Live API” available in preview could lower the barrier to prototyping conversational interfaces for sectors such as fintech support, retail, health and logistics. For enterprises, the inclusion of the model in customer experience tools indicates increased competition among cloud and AI providers targeting contact centres and customer engagement workflows across Africa.

The iOS expansion of Google Translate’s live interpreter headphone experience may also be relevant in markets with high iPhone usage in business settings and among international travellers. If rolled out locally, the feature could support meetings, hospitality and other service industries that rely on rapid, accurate interpretation.

Google did not provide rollout timelines for specific countries beyond stating the global availability parameters tied to AI Mode, nor did it disclose pricing for developer or enterprise access. The company directed readers to product blog posts and a press kit for additional details.

Next, the pace of adoption in Kenya is likely to depend on AI Mode availability, user awareness, data costs and enterprise readiness to integrate live voice and translation tools into customer-facing operations. Developers will also watch for changes as the Gemini Live API moves from preview to broader release.

Safaricom Plc and Indonesia’s Indosat Ooredoo Hutchison (IOH) have signed a partnership to collaborate on artificial intelligence (AI) use cases spanning customer experience, digital financial services and network investment planning, the companies said in a joint statement issued on March 17, 2026 in Barcelona.

Under the agreement, the two telcos said they will work on “advanced AI-driven decisioning” to support more proactive customer engagement, including predictive care to detect and resolve network issues before customers are affected, more relevant product recommendations for prepaid users, and conversational AI tools for customer support.

The partnership also includes collaboration around mobile money and broader digital financial services. IOH said it will draw on Safaricom’s operational experience in mobile financial services—built around M-PESA—to strengthen “resilience, security, and personalization” of digital financial journeys, including AI-powered fraud and risk management and improving payment reliability during peak periods.

The announcement comes as telecom operators increasingly deploy AI to manage network complexity, improve service quality and protect digital payments from fraud. For Kenya, where mobile money infrastructure is deeply embedded in everyday commerce, AI-driven fraud detection and reliability initiatives are closely watched by banks, merchants and regulators seeking to reduce losses and maintain customer trust in digital transactions.

In addition to customer and fintech-related initiatives, the companies said they will explore AI-led insights to improve how IOH plans and invests in its network. The statement referenced “CNX-based Smart CAPEX” and the use of AI to make capital expenditure decisions more demand-driven, with a focus on “high-growth and underserved areas.” No financial terms of the partnership were disclosed, and no monetary figures were provided to convert into Kenyan shillings.

Vikram Sinha, President Director and Chief Executive Officer of Indosat Ooredoo Hutchison, said the collaboration is intended to translate strategy into deployable outcomes. “This partnership with Safaricom is about moving from aspiration to action,” Sinha said. He added that the companies are focused on “delivering innovations that customers can genuinely feel from smarter networks and safer digital transactions to more personal and intuitive experiences,” according to the statement.

Peter Ndegwa, Chief Executive Officer of Safaricom PLC, said the partnership brings together the firms’ respective strengths. “Our partnership with Indosat is built on our respective strengths, their bold AI‑native transformation and our deep experience in building Africa’s most trusted digital and financial ecosystem,” Ndegwa said. He added that the collaboration aims to support “smarter networks and safer transactions” and contribute to “inclusive digital economies,” according to the statement.

Industry-wide, the initiative signals growing cross-market collaboration between operators seeking to industrialise AI across core telecom functions—customer care, network operations and digital financial services—rather than limit AI deployments to pilots. In Kenya and the wider East African market, the emphasis on fraud and risk management reflects sustained pressure on mobile money providers to strengthen controls as transaction volumes grow and fraud techniques evolve.

The companies also said they will collaborate on talent and leadership development to support AI transformation. Planned initiatives include building “AI-fluent executives,” developing “Business–AI Translator roles,” and enabling cross-organisational learning and short-term secondments to speed up skills transfer.

Next steps and timelines for specific deployments were not provided. The firms said the partnership will focus on practical use cases, suggesting pilots and phased rollouts may follow as the parties identify areas where AI tools can be implemented across customer operations, digital finance and network planning.

Unilever and Google Cloud on February 18, 2026 announced a five-year partnership aimed at accelerating Unilever’s use of artificial intelligence by moving key data and enterprise applications onto Google Cloud, in a deal the companies said will reshape how the consumer goods group conducts marketing, brand discovery and internal workflows.

The companies said the partnership will see Unilever migrate its integrated data and cloud platform to Google Cloud to create an “enterprise-wide, AI-first digital backbone” and support “agentic workflows”—systems designed to execute complex tasks across business processes. The announcement was issued in a media release distributed in Kenya.

Unilever said the collaboration will use Google Cloud technologies including Vertex AI, its enterprise AI platform, to build new capabilities in brand discovery, measurement and AI-augmented marketing for brands such as Dove, Vaseline and Hellmann’s. According to the media release, the initiative responds to consumer journeys shifting “toward more conversational and agentic experiences,” including conversational shopping.

The partnership matters for Kenya’s business landscape because it signals continued acceleration of cloud migration and enterprise AI adoption among multinational fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) companies operating in the region. While the media release did not provide country-level investment figures or deployment timelines for East Africa, the decision to route core data platforms to a hyperscale cloud provider is likely to influence how suppliers, agencies and retail partners integrate data, measure campaigns and manage demand forecasting across African markets where Unilever sells its products.

“Technology has moved to the core of value creation at Unilever,” said Willem Uijen, Chief Supply Chain and Operations Officer at Unilever. “As brands are increasingly discovered and chosen in environments shaped by AI, we must lead this shift. This collaboration with Google Cloud sets a new level in how technology can power commerce and growth in the fast-moving consumer goods industry, ensuring Unilever is agile, fit for the future, and equipped to unlock value at every level of the company.”

Tara Brady, President, EMEA at Google Cloud, said the partnership will include deployment of Google’s AI models, including Gemini, alongside modernization work. “In partnering with Unilever as it boldly reimagines its business processes, we are not just modernizing legacy systems; we are deploying our advanced models, such as Gemini, to create a system of intelligence that reasons, learns, and acts,” Brady said. “This will set a new standard for agility and consumer engagement in the CPG sector.”

According to the media release, the collaboration will be structured around three pillars: agentic commerce and marketing intelligence; an integrated data and cloud foundation; and advanced AI. Under the integrated foundation pillar, Unilever will “transition key enterprise applications and data platforms to Google Cloud,” creating what the companies described as a connected environment for scalable AI deployment across the value chain.

For the Kenyan and wider East African market, the move highlights a growing expectation that marketing performance, consumer insights and demand planning will increasingly be driven by centralized, cloud-based data architectures and AI tooling. As global consumer goods groups standardize data platforms, regional teams and local partners may face pressure to improve data quality, interoperability and compliance, while also developing skills in AI-enabled marketing measurement and automation.

Unilever reported sales of €50.5 billion in 2025, equivalent to about KES 7.1 trillion (€50.5 billion) at an assumed exchange rate of KES 140 per euro. The company said it operates in more than 190 countries with 96,000 employees, and that its products are used by 3.7 billion people daily, according to the media release.

Next steps and milestones, including the pace of application migrations and rollout of agentic workflows, were not detailed in the statement. However, the companies indicated the partnership is designed to fast-track adoption of AI across Unilever’s operations and marketing as consumer discovery and shopping continue shifting toward AI-mediated channels.