Gboard’s ‘Writing Tools’ to get a server-side vs. on-device toggle

AI

Key Points of This Article

• The “Writing tools” feature in the Gboard app for Android may become available in a server-side version using “Google servers.”
• An analysis of the in-app code from app version v16.3.3.821569955-beta-arm64-v8a, released around Thursday, October 30, 2025, confirms that a description related to a “Google servers” ON/OFF toggle has been added to the “Writing tools” settings.
• It appears this will be a setting that allows users to switch between a server-side version (with “Google servers” ON) and an on-device AI version (with “Google servers” OFF).

On the Pixel 9 series (excluding the “Pixel 9a”) and the Pixel 10 series, the Gboard keyboard app features “Writing tools” powered by Google’s AI, Gemini.

This “Writing tools” feature is a convenient generative AI function that can proofread the user’s text and rephrase it to match different nuances. The reason it is only available on devices like the Pixel 9 and Pixel 10 series is that it utilizes the on-device AI, “Gemini Nano.”

However, the “Writing tools” feature in the Gboard app for Android might become available in a server-side version using “Google servers” in the future. An analysis of the in-app code from app version v16.3.3.821569955-beta-arm64-v8a, released around Thursday, October 30, 2025, confirms that a description related to a “Google servers” ON/OFF toggle has been added to the “Writing tools” settings.

It appears this will be a setting that allows users to switch between a server-side version (with “Google servers” ON) and an on-device AI version (with “Google servers” OFF). However, this setting has not been officially rolled out yet.

<string name="_0_resource_name_obfuscated_res_0x7f140d5b">Show button that lets you fix grammar, spelling, and punctuation errors</string>
<string name="_0_resource_name_obfuscated_res_0x7f140d5c">Proofread</string>
<string name="_0_resource_name_obfuscated_res_0x7f140d5d">When turned off, proofread uses offline AI that’s built in directly on your device</string>
<string name="_0_resource_name_obfuscated_res_0x7f140d5e">Use Google servers</string>
<string name="_0_resource_name_obfuscated_res_0x7f140d5f">When turned off, writing tools use offline AI that’s built in directly on your device</string>
<string name="_0_resource_name_obfuscated_res_0x7f1407d9">Open menu for reporting Writing Tools results</string>
<string name="_0_resource_name_obfuscated_res_0x7f1407f9">No text to rewrite</string>

<string name="_0_resource_name_obfuscated_res_0x7f140d5b">文法、スペル、句読点のエラーを修正できるボタンを表示します</string>
<string name="_0_resource_name_obfuscated_res_0x7f140d5c">Proofread</string>
<string name="_0_resource_name_obfuscated_res_0x7f140d5d">OFF にすると、デバイスに直接組み込まれたオフライン AI を使用して校正が行われます</string>
<string name="_0_resource_name_obfuscated_res_0x7f140d5e">Google サーバーを使用</string>
<string name="_0_resource_name_obfuscated_res_0x7f140d5f">OFF にすると、文書作成ツールはデバイスに直接組み込まれたオフライン AI を使用します</string>
<string name="_0_resource_name_obfuscated_res_0x7f1407d9">文章作成ツールの結果を報告するためのメニューを開く</string>
<string name="_0_resource_name_obfuscated_res_0x7f1407f9">書き換えるテキストがありません</string>

If the “Google servers” ON/OFF setting is rolled out for the “Writing tools” in the Gboard app for Android, it might become possible for devices without Gemini Nano to use the “Writing tools” exclusively in the server-side version.

Gboard App Link