Samsung brings Galaxy Z Fold 8 Ultra AI features to the Galaxy S26
Samsung began rolling out a One UI 9.0 beta update in late August 2026 that brought multiple AI features from the Galaxy Z Fold 8 and Z Fold 8 Ultra to the Galaxy S26 series, according to Samsung-focused outlet SamMobile. The update, starting with Beta 7 for S26 devices, expanded Galaxy AI capabilities across device categories as part of Samsung’s effort to unify advanced AI tools between its foldable flagships and the S26 lineup.
Among the most notable additions is My FanCam, an AI-driven video editing tool that allows users to select a subject in an existing wide-angle video and have the phone’s on-device AI automatically track and crop the video around that person. SamMobile reported that on the Galaxy S26, My FanCam is accessed through the Samsung Gallery app by tapping the Galaxy AI icon, replicating the workflow found on the Fold 8 Ultra. The feature supports generating multiple clips in different aspect ratios optimized for social media platforms, utilizing the same subject-tracking engine as the foldable flagship. The entire process runs locally on the device’s AI-accelerated image signal processor (ISP) and neural processing unit (NPU), ensuring privacy and offline functionality.
The One UI 9.0 beta update, beginning with Beta 7 released in late August 2026, introduces several AI features previously exclusive to the Galaxy Z Fold 8 and Z Fold 8 Ultra to the Galaxy S26 series, according to Samsung-focused outlet SamMobile.
The update also brings Now Brief enhancements to the Galaxy S26, including custom card support that was previously limited to the Z Fold 8 family. Now Brief functions as a personalized AI briefing hub, allowing users to surface selected data points from apps such as Samsung Health, Weather, and YouTube, based on Google’s Create My Widget concept introduced in Android 17. Samsung’s official statements describe Now Brief on the S26 as more proactive and context-aware, delivering timely reminders, daily schedules, and relevant content tailored to individual usage patterns. By August 2026, Samsung noted that Now Nudge, another AI feature integrated with Samsung Keyboard and system UI, supports 16 languages while Photo Assist supports 41, indicating broad localization for these tools on the S26.
Now Nudge, also part of the One UI 9 beta package, offers contextual suggestions based on on-screen content and stored data. According to reports from SamMobile and other sources, it proposes actions such as creating calendar events when messages mention future plans or surfacing photos in response to requests. On the Galaxy S26, Now Nudge appears within the Samsung Keyboard toolbar and system pop-ups, providing shortcuts to apps like Calendar, Gallery, or Messages. The update further adds a new Finder bar or home screen search bar, aligning the S26 user experience with that of the Z Fold 8 by offering an AI-enhanced, unified entry point to apps, settings, and on-device content.
Additional AI creative and editing tools introduced to the Galaxy S26 include Photo Assist and Creative Studio, formerly known as Drawing Assist. Photo Assist enables fast generative photo editing via text or voice prompts, allowing users to describe edits such as moving objects, changing backgrounds, or compositing outfits, which the AI then applies automatically. Coverage from SamMobile and related outlets highlights that the S26 implementation includes finer control over edits and an accessible editing history, consistent with the Fold 8 Ultra experience. Creative Studio allows users to create new images or artworks from sketches, images, and text. Both tools leverage the AI ISP and enhanced NPU in the Galaxy S26, which Samsung has promoted for improved skin tones, low-light performance, and AI-driven image enhancements comparable to those on the Z Fold 8 Ultra.
Samsung’s messaging around the Galaxy S26 emphasizes agentic AI—artificial intelligence capable of acting autonomously on the user’s behalf—and an upgraded Bixby assistant that supports conversational interactions and natural language understanding. According to Samsung’s enterprise briefings and reports from SamMobile, users on the S26 can select among multiple AI agents, including Gemini and Perplexity, for various tasks. The enhanced Bixby can control system settings and workflows by voice, mirroring the AI-heavy assistant experience found on foldable flagships. Hardware improvements on the S26 Ultra, including a 39% more powerful NPU and a 19% faster CPU, were designed to support richer on-device AI tasks in line with the Z Fold 8 Ultra’s capabilities.
Samsung has framed these updates as part of a broader effort to unify advanced AI features across its foldable and candy-bar flagship devices, creating a consistent Galaxy AI ecosystem. The company first unveiled the Galaxy S26 series on February 25–26, 2026, describing it as its “most intuitive, proactive, and adaptive Galaxy AI phone yet.” The One UI 9 Beta 7 release containing My FanCam, Call Brief, Now Brief enhancements, and the Finder bar was reported on August 28, 2026, with a wider stable rollout expected following beta testing. Samsung has emphasized that these AI feature upgrades are free for existing S26 owners and delivered via software updates, rather than requiring new hardware purchases.
In terms of privacy and security, Samsung announced at Mobile World Congress 2026 an industry-first built-in Privacy Display and new AI privacy controls, which are being extended to the Galaxy S26 series alongside the AI feature expansion. These controls include AI Privacy Alerts that flag suspicious app behavior and an AI Assistant Activity log, according to official Samsung documentation and coverage. The company continues to position these privacy tools as integral to its Galaxy AI strategy, ensuring that advanced AI capabilities are accompanied by enhanced user protections.
