Google flaunts its AI scam tools for Android, but Airtel’s spam alert service still wins on reach

Soon after Airtel Kenya rolled out its free network-level tool to flag suspicious SMS texts — a move that earned it praise for protecting even feature phone users — Google followed up with its own flex. In a detailed blog post, the tech giant last week highlighted a host of AI-driven tools designed to tackle spam, scams, and misleading notifications across its suite of services, including Chrome, Google Messages, and the Phone by Google app.

Google’s latest effort is very smartphone-centric, and in many ways mirrors what Airtel is doing — just not as universally accessible. While Airtel’s spam protection is baked directly into the mobile network (meaning it works on even the most basic phones), Google’s safeguards require either an Android smartphone or Chrome browser, and an active internet connection.

So what’s the deal with Google? Quite a bit.

On Chrome for Android, Google sends AI-powered warnings when a website tries to bombard you with spammy or misleading push notifications. Chrome’s on-device machine learning model — now enhanced with Google’s lightweight Gemini Nano AI — flags suspicious notifications before they get to you, giving you the option to unsubscribe or allow them through. Below is a video demo of how the feature works:

Over in Google Messages and the Phone app on Android, a new on-device scam detection system is already active. It quietly analyzes calls and texts to flag messages or conversations that might be part of a scam, especially those that start off friendly but escalate into requests for personal info or money.

And that’s not all. Google is also deploying AI to hunt down scammy websites in Search — especially those pretending to be airline customer service numbers — and says it’s already slashed such scams by over 80%.

From a global tech perspective, it’s a huge leap forward. But locally, this raises a big concern: what about the millions of Kenyans still using feature phones?

Airtel’s solution, in this regard, deserves serious kudos. It works automatically and invisibly for all Airtel users — smartphone or not. You don’t need to download anything, tweak settings, or even be online. It just works, flagging sketchy SMS messages and offering basic protection to everyone on the network.

Google’s approach, while powerful, feels like a premium-layered defense for those already digitally literate and smartphone-savvy. It’s excellent for Android users, but irrelevant to anyone with a feature phone — and unfortunately, that’s still a large portion of Kenya’s mobile population.

Still, there’s no denying the growing momentum. With both Airtel and Google pushing AI-based solutions to curb scams, Kenyans are getting stronger shields against digital threats. And as these tools evolve, let’s hope the next step includes more inclusive protections — because scammers don’t care what kind of phone you have.

After all, staying safe should be for everyone — not just those with a smartphone.