How to set up the smartest Galaxy AI features on your new Samsung Galaxy S26, step by step

TL;DR key takeaways:

• The Samsung Galaxy S26 Series is built around Galaxy AI[1], with features that surface information when you need it and stay out of the way when you don't.

• Now Brief and Now Bar recap your schedule, current weather forecast, and live activities like music playback.

• Call Screening filters unknown callers and provides a live transcript of their reason for calling before you decide whether to pick up.

• Photo Assist[2], Creative Studio[3], and Bixby work together so editing, content creation, and voice control all happen in one place.

• Privacy Display[4] on the Galaxy S26 Ultra narrows the screen’s viewing angle to keep your screen private in public spaces.

Modern existence can be exhausting. Between double-booked meetings on your work calendar and an entire digital social life to manage online, the small stuff has a way of stealing time you’d rather have for, you know, life.

The Samsung Galaxy S26 is built to smooth out the rhythm of that everyday routine so you can get some of your time back. From need-to-know morning briefings that set your workday up for success, to live call transcripts that filter unknown numbers before you decide whether to pick up, to weekend photo-editing for post-worthy content, the device handles the little things for you.

Much of this behind-the-scenes help is thanks to Galaxy AI, Samsung’s on-device AI platform, which got a boost with the brand’s latest lineup of S26 devices. Here’s a quick, step-by-step guide to setting up the most useful features the moment you’ve finished unboxing.

Step 1. Personalise your lock screen with Now Brief

Now Brief is the Galaxy S26’s personalised daily briefing. It pulls together calendar entries, weather data, and updates from your selected interests (e.g., health and wellness, travel, news, music and podcasts, SmartThings, and Wallet), so you can get all that information at a quick glance. For those days when your brain is at about 40 percent capacity before your first coffee, the day's essentials are right at your fingertips instead of buried across half a dozen apps.

To set it up:

• First, switch on Personal Data Intelligence in Settings (this is what lets Galaxy AI process your habits and preferences on-device to personalise the briefing)

• Then, open Settings, tap Galaxy AI, and select Now Brief

• Tap Content to Include and toggle on any of the categories you want to see

You can then access Now Brief from the Edge panel, from the Now Bar on your lock screen (more on that in the next step), or by adding the Now Brief widget to your home screen.

Now Brief also refreshes through the day with morning, afternoon, and evening versions, so what you see in the morning can be geared toward revving up for the day ahead, and your evening digest can be designed for wind-down mode. The feature is also intelligent and adaptive, so the longer you use it, the more tailored its suggestions become.

Step 2. Turn on Now Bar for live activities on your lock screen

Now Bar pairs with Now Brief by showing real-time activities on your lock screen, such as music playback controls and active timers. If you’re listening to a podcast while making dinner or following turn-by-turn directions, Now Bar keeps the relevant information one glance away.

To configure it:

• Open Settings, select Lock Screen and AOD, then tap Now Bar

• Under Live Notifications, tap See All and toggle on the apps you want

• Back on the Now Bar screen, turn on options like Now Brief, Current Mode, Do Not Disturb, and Torch

• Tap a Now Bar entry to expand it, swipe up to cycle between active ones, or press and hold to manage settings

Step 3. Set up Call Screening before the next unknown number rings

Spam calls always seem to ring the moment you sit down to focus, and the line between a genuine call and a scam attempt gets blurrier every year.

The Galaxy AI Call Screening feature uses on-device AI to evaluate calls from unknown numbers and supply a live transcript of the caller’s intent, so you can decide whether or not to pick up. It works across more than a dozen languages, and you can configure it to auto-screen all unknown callers if you’d rather not see them ring through.

To activate it:

• Open the Phone app

• Tap the three-dot menu in the upper right-hand corner and click Settings

• Look for Call Screening at the top of the list and toggle the feature on to enable

Step 4. Save taps with Automation in Modes and Routines

Automation lets you chain conditions to actions, so your phone behaves the way you want without manual toggling. For example: You might want your Galaxy S26 to dim the screen and switch to grayscale half an hour before your usual bedtime, or silence work-app notifications the moment you leave the office.

To create a Routine:

• Open Settings > Modes and Routines

• Tap the Routines tab (on the bottom menu)

• Hit the ‘+’ icon up top

• Set your ‘If’ conditions (location, time, app, sensor trigger, etc.), and the resulting ‘Then’ actions 

• Hit ‘Save’ to add the Routine to your device’s memory

Step 5. Edit photos with Photo Assist

Photo Assist lives inside the Gallery app and lets you remove unwanted elements in the chaotic group shot you need to tidy. You can add new details (like a full moon over the skyline or fresh snow on the ground), shift the lighting on a shot using text or voice prompts, or merge two photos together into a single frame.

To activate:

• Open any photo in your Gallery

• Tap the Galaxy AI icon at the centre of the bottom toolbar (the starburst icon)

• Circle the area you want to change or describe the edit you’re after

Edits save as copies, so your originals stay intact.

Step 6. Generate shareable content in Creative Studio

Creative Studio, accessed via the Edge panel, turns your existing photos into custom stickers, greeting cards, or invitations. It's a simple way to spin a portrait of your kid into a birthday-party invite, or a cute snapshot of your dog into a sticker pack the fam group chat will love.

To make something: 

• Swipe in the Edge panel and tap Creative Studio

• Choose a photo

• Describe what you want to make and pick a style

• Tap Generate

You'll have something ready to share within seconds (no extra design software or apps necessary).

Step 7. Switch on Privacy Display

Though not an AI feature per se, the Privacy Display is a smart enough design to deserve a spot on this list. 

It’s a hardware-level feature exclusive to the Galaxy S26 Ultra that narrows the screen’s viewing angle — so the stranger sitting next to you on public transport can’t easily read your dating app messages, account balance on your banking app, or whatever other sensitive info may be on your screen.

To enable the feature:

• Head to Settings > Display

• Toggle Privacy Display on

To set it to activate automatically in certain circumstances:

• Tap Privacy Display > Conditions for Turning On > Apps

• Choose from the list, or toggle on PIN, pattern, password so the feature kicks in whenever you authenticate

Step 8. Get to know Bixby and pair your Galaxy Buds

Bixby on the Galaxy S26 has returned with stronger natural language understanding, so you can phrase requests the way you’d say them out loud. 

To start a conversation with Bixby:

• Open the Bixby app from your app drawer or say ‘Hi Bixby’ once you've enabled voice activation in Settings > Bixby > Voice Wake-Up

Or, for a more integrated setup, pair a set of Galaxy Buds and set them up to work with Galaxy AI: 

• Open the case near your Galaxy S26 and follow the on-screen prompt, or head to Settings > Connections > Bluetooth

Once linked, your Buds can handle Bixby commands hands-free and take incoming calls[5], so you can lean on Call Screening without lifting the phone to your ear.

Those are just eight of the Galaxy S26 features most worth switching on out of the box, and there are plenty more you can play with to help streamline your daily life. A few minutes of set-up now, and the S26 takes over the small stuff that's been making the daily juggle feel heavier than it needs to be.

The Galaxy S26 Series is available now at samsung.com.

FAQs

Are all these features available across the full Galaxy S26 Series?

Now Brief, Now Bar, Call Screening, Bixby, Automation, Photo Assist, and Creative Studio are available across the Galaxy S26, Galaxy S26+, and Galaxy S26 Ultra. Privacy Display is exclusive to the Ultra, where it’s built directly into the display hardware.

Do Galaxy AI features process my data on the device or in the cloud?

The Galaxy S26 is designed to handle Galaxy AI workloads on the device where possible, which means less data leaves your phone. On-device processing is backed by Samsung Knox, the multi-layer security platform built into every Galaxy device, with the Personal Data Engine[6] handling your habits and preferences locally.

What can I do with Galaxy Buds that I can't do with the Galaxy S26 alone?

Once paired, Galaxy Buds let you handle Bixby commands hands-free, take incoming calls without lifting the phone (handy when you're using Call Screening), and switch audio automatically between your S26 and other Galaxy devices you're signed into.

Disclaimers:
[1] Samsung account login is required for certain AI features. Galaxy AI features are provided for free. Future releases may include additional advanced features that are offered as part of a paid subscription plan. Different terms may apply for AI features provided by third parties.
[2] Requires network connection and Samsung account login. A visible watermark is overlaid on the saved image to indicate it was generated by Galaxy AI. Accuracy of output not guaranteed.
[3] Requires network connection and Samsung account login. Accuracy of output not guaranteed.
[4] Requires manual activation in settings to function. Privacy Display feature is not AI-powered.
[5] Requires Galaxy smartphone with One UI 8.5 or above
[6] Personal Data Engine is exclusive to Samsung native apps and is not applicable to third-party applications. Personal Data Engine recognises 20 languages and certain accents/dialects. The Personal Data Intelligence menu must be switched on. Analysed data will be deleted once the Intelligence menu is turned off.