Best AI phones 2025: which smartphone has the best AI features? | Stuff

Artificial intelligence, or AI, is the phone world’s new favourite buzzword. Almost every upcoming smartphone has plans to incorporate machine learning and large language models in some form or another, and the first to do so are already on sale. But what are the best AI phones – and the features they bring actually worth having?

I’ve used a bunch of phones with AI on board, and a handful more that offload their AI processing to the cloud. The best AI smartphones have a mix of both. You’ll even find AI cameras and AI image editing on certain flagships. Some use cases are genuinely impressive, and will appeal to most phone owners; others are a lot more niche, and will only be useful to a small minority.

These are the models that stand out so far.

The best AI smartphones on sale now:

1. Google Pixel 9 Pro / XL

The days of Google’s flagship Pixel phones also being value champions are now long gone, but now they have the high quality build and design to rub shoulders with the equally high-priced competition. Comfortably the best looking Pixel to date, you also now get two size options: the 6.3in Pixel 9 Pro, and the 6.8in Pixel 9 Pro XL.

Both phones have the same excellent rear camera trio, both are powered by a much more efficient Tensor G4 processor, and both can comfortably last all day – though the larger phone does benefit from a much beefier battery capacity. High quality AMOLED screens, Google’s delightfully pared-back take on Android, and one of the best update promises in the business keep them competitive on both hardware and software, while Gemini pushes them to the forefront of AI on phones.

Google Pixel 9 Pro AI features

Google’s AI offering has gone through a couple of names, and just to confuse things further, has multiple versions. Originally known as Bard, it got renamed to Gemini in early 2024. In simple terms, Gemini Pro powers Gemini’s web-based chat interface; Gemini Ultra is more powerful, but not yet open to the public; and Gemini Nano is what’s baked into the Pixel 9 Pro duo.

Right now, its top features include a Summarise function in the voice recorder app. Open any recording, tap the Transcript button, then Summarise at the top; the phone will generate a bullet point synopsis, all on-device.

Smart reply in Gboard uses AI to suggest responses to your WhatsApp, Line, and KakaoTalk chats – but only in US English right now, and as a developer preview. It should start rolling out more widely later this year.

Circle to search is available to everyone, right now. Press and hold the gesture indicator (or onscreen home button if you have it enabled) and draw a circle around any onscreen text or image; your phone will then look it up on Google, using machine learning to recognise objects and locations with impressive speed and accuracy.

The Pixel 9 Pro can also create AI-generated wallpapers. It’s baked into Android 14, so will eventually be added to other manufacturers’ mobiles. You can pick from a bunch of themes, objects, materials and colours, with the phone creating a mix of convincing, surreal and clearly computer generated images.

Naturally for a Pixel phone, the Pixel 9 Pro’s AI focuses heavily on photography. Magic Editor intelligently recognises objects when you tap them, letting you move them around the image – or remove them entirely, with the phone filling in the gaps. The results can be genuinely impressive.

Best Take feels more like clever photo merging than true AI; it relies on you having taken multiple shots of the same scene. You can then tap on each person’s face and swap it out – handy for group shots where one person is blinking or looking away.

Finally, Video Boost sends your recorded video footage off to the Cloud for AI-based processing. It enhances colour and lighting to an impressive degree, but it’s Google’s servers doing all the heavy lifting here, rather than your phone.

2. Samsung Galaxy S24 Ultra

The styling might not have changed much between generations, but Samsung has given the Galaxy S24 Ultra a comprehensive overhaul just about everywhere else. The frame has been given the titanium treatment, and curved glass is out in favour of a flat panel protected by Corning Gorilla Armour. Its abilities to reduce light reflections border on the magical.

A Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 For Galaxy CPU provides the performance muscle, with Samsung-specific tweaks that give it the edge over rival flagships. 12GB of RAM and a range of capacity options mean there’s a model out there for everyone. The S Pen stylus returns for note-taking and doodling, and the 5000mAh battery is easily big enough to last an entire day.

There’s still a quad camera setup at the rear, led by a 200MP main snapper that works wonders in just about all light conditions. A 12MP ultrawide and 10MP telephoto good for 3x optical zoom are unchanged from the outgoing S22 Ultra, but that phone’s 10x zoom lens has been traded for a 50MP periscope. It can do 5x optical zoom, and uses algorithms to get you even closer to the action.

Galaxy S24 Ultra AI features

Galaxy AI, Samsung’s suite of AI-enhanced software, debuted on the Galaxy S24 Ultra. Some of the stand-out features include a transcription summariser built into the voice recorder, which transcribes conversations on the fly (in multiple languages, to boot) and then creates a succinct synopsis in just a few taps.

Chat assist is baked into the onscreen keyboard, and suggests ways to tighten up your texts on the fly. It can create more professional-sounding phrases that might be good for work chats; emoji-filled messages that are down with the kids; sprinkle hashtags through your text for social media success; and even talk like Shakespeare.

Real-time voice translation, for both phone calls and in person, also relies on AI to give speedy and accurate interpretation. It supports 13 languages at launch, with more expected to follow later.

There’s also Circle to Search; this Google-led tool isn’t exclusive to Samsung phones any more, but it works brilliantly with the S24 Ultra’s S Pen. Press and hold the home button (or gesture bar, if you’re using gesture controls) and draw a circle around anything onscreen. Machine learning recognises objects and locations in a flash, bringing up relevant Google searches – including where to buy the items in question.

Samsung has also added AI to its image editor and photo gallery. It can remove unwanted reflections from glass and shadows from faces with a tap, delete or reposition objects anywhere in the frame, and generationally expand any images you’ve cropped too tightly. The AI camera elements are largely done post-shutter press, rather than before, but object detection does rely on machine learning.

Finally, Instant Slow-mo can create extra frames and inject them into your recorded video footage, creating a convincing effect even if your clips were only shot at 30fps. Just preview your video in the Samsung Gallery app, press and hold on the moment you want slowed down, and it’ll play back brilliantly smoothly.

The best news for owners of older Galaxy phones? Samsung has brought most of these AI additions to the Galaxy Z Fold 5, Flip 5, Galaxy S23 and Galaxy S22 series, meaning you don’t need to upgrade to try them out.

3. Xiaomi 14 Ultra

Xiaomi’s latest flagship has some of the best photography hardware of any phone – and so it should, given the colossal camera bump at its rear. Leica glass, a 1in lead sensor with variable aperture lens, separate 3x and 5x zoom lenses each with optical image stabilisation, and a macro-capable ultrawide snapper make for impeccable images.

Top-tier internals, including a Snapdragon 8 Gen 3 CPU and a huge 5000mAh battery, keep pace everywhere else. An OLED display then finds the ideal middle ground between flat glass and curved-edge panels.

Xiaomi 14 Ultra AI features

As part of its initial AI efforts, Xiaomi added AI-generated subtitles for video calls. The firm’s Image editor already had object eraser and sky replacement tools, but now these are reported to use AI acceleration. AI audio transcription, voice translation and note summaries all make the grade, too.

The firm also brought an AI portrait feature in an over-the-air update. It can put take your face from a photo and put it into just about any pose, outfit or background you can think of (as long as it’s PG, of course). Generative image expansion also lets you resize images you’ve cropped in on too tightly.

4. Motorola Razr 50 Ultra

Twenty years after the original Razr set new standards for flip phone coolness, the Razr 50 Ultra is back to do it all again. Moto has squeezed in the largest outer screen you’ll find on any flip-style foldable, as well as an even bigger battery than the outgoing model. Its dual outer cameras have been upgraded with 50MP sensors, which stand to be among the best available on any current clamshell, and Snapdragon silicon promises impeccable performance.

It went on sale ahead of Samsung’s Galaxy Z Flip 6, and undercuts the outgoing Z Flip 5 by a decent amount. Add in the fact Motorola doesn’t restrict which apps can run on that expansive outer display, and this is undeniably the new flip phone standard.

Motorola Razr 50 Ultra AI features

The Razr 50 Ultra is the first phone to launch running Google Gemini instead of Google Assistant, putting AI-accelerated commands in easy access right out of the box. That means it can recognise photos, read and write text, and answer voice questions – even on the cover display, without having to unfold the phone.

Gemini Nano messaging is built into the stock messages app, letting you change the tone of your texts before sending. Think a more formal message for a work client, or a jokey tone for friends or family.

Motorola also has its own generative AI tool called Style Sync. This lets you snap a photo with the phone’s cameras, then create a wallpaper based on the colours and patterns in the shot. It’s meant to let you match your phone to your outfit, but I found it works great on paintings, graffiti and floor mats too.