The context · May 2026
Google’s May 2026 I/O keynote placed agentic AI and its use in everyday products at the centre of the company’s direction. [1]
Product breadth can obscure the problem
A keynote brings many capabilities together into one story. A business has to decide which, if any, address a problem worth solving. Begin with a task people find slow, error-prone or difficult to complete. Describe the current process before choosing an assistant or platform.
Locate the point of authority
A workflow may include gathering information, proposing an action and carrying it out. These steps do not need the same permissions. An assistant that prepares a useful draft can create value without being allowed to send it, change a record or commit the organisation to a decision.
Make the result observable
Agree what would improve for the person doing the work: less searching, fewer corrections or a shorter handover. Use the announcement as a source of options, then test one option against the existing process. A capability becomes a business case only when those benefits survive contact with the actual task.
Source & context
Google · Sundar Pichai’s I/O remarks, 19 May 2026This retrospective was written for the archive in September 2026. The linked primary source documents the announcement or event; the practical interpretation and proposed approach are Sansa’s editorial perspective. Public examples do not imply a client relationship. Product capabilities and guidance may have changed since the period discussed.
Another perspective · May 2026
A discovery sprint for one assistant-supported workflow
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