Many modern LG TVs let you talk to Alexa or Google Assistant using your voice through the remote — you may even have shortcuts for these features right on your remote. However, some LG TVs are about to lose this smart feature.
LG TVs are about to stop supporting Google Assistant
This week, many LG smart TV owners (including on Reddit) started seeing warnings that Google Assistant will no longer work as of May 1. As a result, you won't be able to talk to the virtual assistant to interact with your TV through search or other features. The notice makes it clear that general voice functionality isn't going away; it's just Google Assistant support that's being removed:
Terminate Google Assistant service
Google Assistant will no longer be available on this device as of May 1, 2025. Voice recognition services provided via the microphone button on the remote control will still be available.
The default LG Assistant, accessible via the microphone button on the remote, still lets you search your TV, adjust settings, and more with your voice. But if you rely on Google Assistant integration for much else, the bad news is that your TV is about to become less useful. It's a useful reminder that smart TV features can change at any time at the whim of manufacturers — your favorite feature could be the next to go, even if you don't care about Google Assistant.
For now, it appears that Alexa support for LG TVs is unaffected. LG announced in early 2025 that its 2025 OLED TV models would feature Microsoft Copilot, although it’s unclear whether the feature will be integrated into older models to replace Google Assistant.
Gemini is the hot new assistant
While the move was sudden, it wasn’t surprising. As Google continued to develop and push Gemini, Google Assistant began to become outdated, forcing the company to begin phasing it out. Google Assistant will lose functionality before it’s finally dead by the end of 2025.
Thankfully, this doesn't break the connection between Google Home and LG's ThinQ platform. You can still use the Google Home app to control your LG TV (and other LG devices); the only feature that's missing for now is the ability to talk to Google Assistant on your TV.
In the coming months, we could see LG replace Google Assistant with Gemini, following in Google's footsteps. However, this may only appear on the latest TVs to push people to upgrade.
Right now, the built-in voice assistant is capable of basic tasks, though it's not as exciting as Google Assistant. Perhaps LG and other TV makers should focus on adding features that actually make smart TVs better.
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