The update adds a dedicated “Camera translate” button to KaiOS’ version of Assistant. By tapping the icon, Indian users can snap a photo of a product label, street sign or document, and Assistant will translate the text into English, Hindi, Bengali, Telugu, Marathi or Tamil. Support for two other languages — Kannada and Gujarati — is coming soon. Like its smartphone counterpart, Assistant on KaiOS can also read words out loud, as well as define them. 

“This is another step in our commitment to make language more accessible to everyone,” Google said. “… we hope this will enable millions of KaiOS users across the country to have a more seamless language experience.”  

Since its initial $22 million investment in KaiOS back in 2018, Google has worked with the company to make more of its marquee apps and services available on the platform. The move also comes on the heels of a separate expansion Google made into India. Last week, the company bought a $4.5 billion stake in Jio, the country’s largest wireless carrier. The two said they would develop low-cost Android phones as part of the partnership.