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Accelerating on-device AI: A look at Arm and Google AI Edge optimization

Integration of Arm Scalable Matrix Extension 2 (SME2) and the Google AI Edge software stack enables high-performance, on-device generative AI by turning the CPU into a powerful matrix-compute accelerator. Using Stability AI’s "stable-audio-open-small" model as a case study, it outlines a streamlined "Convert, Optimize, and Deploy" pipeline that utilizes LiteRT, XNNPACK, and KleidiAI to automate hardware acceleration. The resulting implementation achieves over a 2x speedup in audio generation and a 4x reduction in memory usage while maintaining high audio quality on Arm-powered mobile devices and laptops.

Source: Google Developers Blog

Expanded options for header images in Google Forms

Form creators now have more options for header images in Google Forms. Previously, creators could only use a pre-selected theme, upload an image, or choose an image from Google Photos. In addition to these options, they can now choose an image from Google Drive or Google Images or use a URL. This makes it easier to add an appropriate and compelling header image to your form.

User chooses a Google Drive image as the header image for a Google Form

Getting started

Admins: There is no admin control for this feature.
End users: Visit the Help Center to learn more about adding a header image.

Rollout pace

Rapid Release domains: Gradual rollout (up to 15 days for feature visibility) visibility) started on May 14, 2026
Scheduled Release domains: Gradual rollout (up to 15 days for feature visibility) starting on June 1, 2026

Availability

Available to all Google Workspace customers, Workspace Individual subscribers, and users with personal Google accounts

Resources

Google Help: Change the theme or font of your form

Source: Google Workspace Updates

Improving security posture with default context-aware access for all SAML applications

Administrators can now apply a global context-aware access (CAA) policy to all SAML applications within their organization. This update introduces a default assignment that serves as a universal security baseline, automatically protecting any SAML-based app that does not have a specific policy already assigned. By establishing this "secure-by-default" posture, IT teams can help protect internal data and third-party SaaS tools as new applications are integrated into their ecosystem.

This global control significantly reduces the administrative burden of managing security for applications at scale. Instead of manually configuring rules for every individual SAML app, administrators can set a single policy to cover their entire environment. Specific application-level policies will still take precedence, allowing for granular control where needed while the global policy acts as a reliable safety net.

These default policies support both Monitor and Active modes, providing flexibility in how security requirements are phased in. Detailed audit logs will capture these enforcement events, and remediation messages help end users understand how to resolve access issues independently.

Admins can configure CAA policies for all SAML apps in the Admin console under Security > Context-aware Access > General settings.

Getting started

Admins: This feature will be OFF by default and can be enabled at the OU or group level. Visit the Help Center to learn more about applying a default context-aware access policy for all SAML apps.
End users: This feature is available to admins only.

Rollout pace

Rapid Release and Scheduled Release domains: Available now

Availability

Enterprise: Enterprise Standard and Plus
Education: Education Standard and Plus
Other Editions: Frontline Standard and Plus; Enterprise Essentials Plus; Cloud Identity Premium

Resources

Google Workspace Admin Help: Apply a default Context-Aware Access policy for all SAML apps
Google Workspace Admin Help: Deploy Context-Aware Access

Source: Google Workspace Updates

Enhancing the Datadog app for Google Chat

The latest version of the Datadog app for Google Chat allows you to integrate Datadog into your Google Chat workflows more seamlessly and stay on top of critical infrastructure without leaving the flow of team collaboration. Newly added features include:

Link previews

Cut and paste a widget from a Datadog dashboard and see the chart inside Google Chat.

Image of link preview generated by Datadog

Improved notification set-up

Link your Workspace domain to Datadog and you’ll be able to easily create Google Chat notification handles from within Datadog.

Incident management

Declare incidents with a command from Google Chat, and automatically create spaces in Google Chat to centralize conversations about an incident.

Note that a Datadog license is required to use the Datadog app for Chat.

Getting started

Admins: Ensure the Datadog Google Chat App is allowlisted for your organization, then follow instructions to connect your Chat organization to your Datadog organization and delegate a service account user.
End users: Share dashboard widgets by copying and pasting from Datadog. Learn more about configuring and declaring incidents from Google Chat.

Rollout pace

Rapid Release and Scheduled Release domains: Available now

Availability

Available to all Google Workspace customers, Workspace Individual subscribers, and users with personal Google accounts (Datadog license required)

Resources

Google Workspace Marketplace: Datadog
Datadog Docs: Integrate Google Chat with Datadog Incident Management
Datadog Docs: Google Chat

Source: Google Workspace Updates

Chrome Dev for Desktop Update

The Dev channel has been updated to 150.0.7838.0 for Windows, Mac and Linux.

A partial list of changes is available in the Git log. Interested in switching release channels? Find out how. If you find a new issue, please let us know by filing a bug. The community help forum is also a great place to reach out for help or learn about common issues.

Chrome Release Team
Google Chrome

Source: Google Chrome Releases

Announcing expanded experiment functionality in Google Ads API v24.1

We are excited to announce a significant expansion of the Google Ads A/B experiments feature set in the v24.1 release, launched yesterday, May 13, 2026. We know API functionality is critical for advertisers who manage large sophisticated accounts, and we want to give these advertisers the capability to better create and manage their A/B experiments at scale. This update broadens the platform's current scope, enabling advertisers to leverage the power of experiments for a broader range of testing scenarios to drive campaign performance.

Direct experiment reporting

One of the most requested enhancements is the ability to query experiment statistics directly through the API. Previously, you had to manually calculate statistics by querying campaign resources. With v24.1, we are exposing experiment arm-level and significance stats, including:

Control arm stats: The average value of metrics in the control arm.
Point estimates: The mean value of the difference between the control and treatment arms, calculated via the jackknife method.
Margin of error: The radius of the confidence interval.
P-values: Represents the calculated probability that the difference could have occurred by chance.

New experiment types

We are expanding support for a variety of experiment types to help you find the best configurations for your business:

Feature-specific tests (AI Max and broad match): Test the impact of enabling AI Max or broad match keywords. These use an intra-campaign workflow, where the feature is tested within the original campaign shared by both the control and treatment arms.
Custom video experiments: Run custom experiments consisting of Video campaigns.
Performance Max replacement: Test how your Shopping campaigns perform compared to Performance Max.
Performance Max asset optimization: Specifically for Performance Max, you can test different variations of assets including text, images, and videos. This asset optimization workflow helps determine which creative combinations drive the best results.

While these updates cover a significant number of use cases, we are continuing to work on the platform and plan to introduce even more experiment types in future releases.

Where can I learn more?

Updated documentation and code examples are available on the Google Ads API Developer site. We also encourage you to join the discussion and share your feedback on our Ads and Measurement Community Discord server.

- Laura Chevalier, Google Ads API Team

Source: Google Ads Developer Blog

Deploying ServiceNow Now Assist Virtual Agent from the Google Workspace Marketplace

Google Workspace customers can now deploy the Now Assist Virtual Agent for Google Chat integration directly from the Google Workspace Marketplace. This update simplifies the deployment process for Workspace and ServiceNow administrators, allowing them to provide employees with centralized access to support and automated workflows within their primary communication tool more easily.

The Now Assist Virtual Agent allows users to perform routine ServiceNow tasks and requests without leaving Google Chat. Individuals can get answers from knowledge base articles, create support tickets, check the status of existing requests, and order new items. This integration reduces the need to switch between applications, helping users maintain focus and resolve issues more efficiently.

With Now Assist, users have a contextual conversational experience that can initiate AI Agents to further automate complex workflows and requests.

Getting started

Admins: ServiceNow admins need to install the Google Chat plugin 3.0 and link their Google Chat with ServiceNow. Workspace admins can then deploy the Now Assist Virtual Agent on their users’ behalf. Visit the Help Center to learn more about installing Marketplace apps for your organization.
End users: End users need a ServiceNow account to use this app. They can search for the Now Assist Virtual Agent in Google Chat under Apps > Find apps or visit the Google Workspace Marketplace to install the Now Assist Virtual Agent.

Rollout pace

Rapid Release and Scheduled Release domains: Available now

Availability

Available to all Google Workspace customers, Workspace Individual Subscribers, and users with personal Google accounts. To utilize this feature, customers must have both ServiceNow and Google Chat. Note that Now Assist capabilities require an additional license from ServiceNow.