(Solved) Speech Services by Google Wont Stop Downloading

Many Android users started noticing Speech Services by Google downloading notifications in the phone’s notifications tray and that notification persisted from hours to weeks. The issue is not limited to a particular Android version or manufacturer. Moreover, the issue also happened when updating multiple languages like English (US), English (UK), German, etc.

Google may keep downloading Speech services due to many factors but the following can be considered as the main ones:

Force Stop the Speech Services by Google

A temporary glitch may not let the download complete for Google Speech Services as the phone is failing to execute the related modules. In this context, force stopping the speech services may clear the glitch and thus solve the problem.

1. Launch the Android phone Settings and open Apps or Applications.

   

2. Now select Speech Services by Google (some users may need to enable viewing of system apps) and tap on Force Stop.

   

3. Then confirm to Force Stop the Google Speech Services and afterward, check if its download issue is resolved.

   

In the case Secure Folder is used, then a user may force stop the Speech Services in the Secure Folder settings.

Restart the Android Phone

A temporary glitch may not let the speech services by Google complete the download and restarting the Android phone may clear the glitch, thus solving the problem.

1. Press/hold the Android phone’s power button and once the power menu is shown, tap on Restart.

   

2. Upon restart, check if the speech services issue is cleared.
3. If not, press/hold the power button of the phone, and once the power menu is shown, tap on Shut Down or Power off.
4. Now wait for 30 seconds and then power on the phone to check if it is clear of the speech services issue.

Cancel the Speech Services’ Download and Disable its Notification

A temporary glitch may not let the phone complete the speech services update. Here, canceling the update to reinitialize the process may clear the issue. For some users, disabling the update notification may suffice the requirements but keep in mind that it only hides the notification whereas the original process may keep working in the background, using the battery and data of the phone.

1. Swipe down on the phone’s screen to open the Notifications tray of the phone.
2. Now tap and hold on to the Speech Services notification.
3. Once the pop-up is shown, tap on Cancel, and afterward, check if the issue was resolved.
4. If not and a user wants to disable the app notifications, then launch the Android phone Settings and open Apps/Applications.
5. Now select Speech Services by Google and open Notifications.

   

6. Then disable Notifications by toggling its switch to the off position and afterward, check if the download notification of the speech services is removed.

   

In the case of Secure Folder, a user may disable the notifications in the Secure Folder settings.

Manually Update Speech Services by Google

As the automatic update of Google Speech Services is failing or stuck in the update loop, then manually updating the same may do the trick.

1. Firstly, restart the Android phone and upon restart, launch Google Play Store.
2. Now search for Speech Services by Google and open its result.

   

3. Then, if an update of speech services is available, tap on it to install it, and once installed, check if the downloading issue of speech services is cleared.

Update the Phone’s OS to the Latest Build

If the phone’s OS is missing essential Android updates, then that may cause the Google speech services issue at hand as the incompatibility between the phone’s OS and Google servers may not let the download complete. In this case, a user may stop Google speech services from downloading by updating the phone’s OS to the latest build.

1. Firstly, make sure the Android phone is fully charged and connect it to Wi-Fi (a data connection can be spotty at times).
2. Now launch the Settings of the Android phone and tap on About Phone.

   

3. Now select System Update and tap on Check for Updates.

   

4. If an Android update is shown, install the update (it may take some time, depending on the size of the update) and wait till the process completes.

   

5. Once done, restart the phone, and upon restart, check if it is clear of the download issue of speech services.

Clear Cache and Data of the Speech Services by Google

A user may face the downloading issue by Google Speech Services if the cache or data of the Google Speech Services is corrupt. Here, a user may stop Google’s speech services from waiting for connection by clearing the cache and data of the Google Speech Services.

1. Launch the Android phone Settings and open Apps or Application Manager.
2. Now find Speech Services by Google and tap on it. Some users may have to enable viewing of System Apps or look under other apps.
3. Then tap on Force Stop and afterward, confirm to Force Stop the app.
4. Now open Storage and tap on Clear Cache.

   

5. Then tap on Clear Storage and afterward, confirm to clear the Speech Services’ data.

   

6. Now check if the download issue of the Speech Services by Google is cleared.
7. If that fails, check if clearing the phone’s cache resolves the issue.

Try Another Network Type, Network, or Use a VPN

If a particular network type (like a phone’s data connection) is spotty or the ISP is interfering with the traffic between the device and Google servers, then that may cause the download issue of speech services. In this case, trying another network type, network, or using a VPN may clear the download issue.

1. Turn off the mobile data of the Android phone and connect the phone to a Wi-Fi network.

   

2. Then put the phone on charging and afterward, check if the speech services by Google have been downloaded successfully.
3. If not, install a VPN app on the Android phone and launch it.
4. Now connect to a preferred location and check if the speech services issue is resolved.
5. If that did not work, check if connecting the phone to another network resolves the issue. 

Set the Google Play Store to Update Over Any Network

If the Google Play Store is set to update its apps over a Wi-Fi, then that may cause the issue of speech services if, due to a glitch, Google Play Store “thinks” the Wi-Fi network is in use as a mobile data network. Here, setting the Google Play Store to update over any network may resolve the issue.

1. Launch Google Play Store and tap on the user icon in the top right to open its menu.
2. Now select Settings and expand Network Preferences.

   

3. Then set App Download Preference, Auto-Update Apps, and Auto-Play Videos to Over Any Network. 

   

4. Now restart the Android phone after closing the Play Store and upon restart, check if the download issue of Google speech services is cleared.

Disable Auto Update of the Speech Services by Google

If a user’s internet connection is spotty, then the phone’s attempt to auto-update Speech Services by Google may not be successful. In this case, disabling the Auto-Update of Google Speech Services may solve the problem. Keep in mind a user may manually update these services if auto-update is disabled. 

1. Launch Google Play Store and search for Speech Services by Google.
2. Now open the result of Speech Services by Google and tap on the three vertical ellipses (in the top right corner).
3. Then uncheck Auto Update and close Google Play Store.

   

4. Now restart the phone and upon restart, check if the Speech Services download issue has stopped.

Uninstall the Updates of the Speech Services

If the last update applied to the Speech Services is corrupt, then that may not let the phone complete the download of the update in question and cause the issue at hand. In this context, uninstalling the updates of the Google speech services may solve the problem.

1. Launch the Android phone Settings and open Apps or Applications.
2. Now open Speech Services by Google and tap on Uninstall Updates. Some users may have to tap on the three vertical ellipses and select Uninstall Updates.

   

3. Once the updates are uninstalled, restart the phone and upon restart, check if the speech services download issue is cleared.

Change the User’s Regional Settings to the Actual Region

If there is a mismatch between a user’s actual region and the one phone is configured to, then that may result in the issue at hand as the phone fails to download the required language pack as per the user’s region. Here, changing the user’s regional settings to the actual one may resolve the issue.

1. Launch the Android phone Settings and open Google.

   

2. Now, in the top right corner, tap on the user icon and select Settings.
3. Then open Language and Region and set the region to the actual one.
4. Now close the opened menus and restart the Android phone.
5. Upon restart, check if the Speech Services issue is resolved.

Set the Language to Auto Update at Any Time

If the language that Google Speech Services is trying to update is set to update over Wi-Fi only, then that may cause the download issue at hand as the language settings might not match the update settings of the phone. In this scenario, setting the language to auto-update at any time may solve the problem.

1. Launch the Android phone Settings and open Google.
2. Now select Settings for Google Apps and open Search, Assistant & Voice.

   

3. Now open Voice >> Offline Speech Recognition and select the problematic language in the All menu.

   

4. Then tap on Auto-Update and afterward, select Anytime or Auto (if an unlimited data plan is available).

   

5. Now restart the phone after closing the opened menus and upon restart, check if the Speech Services issue is resolved.

   

6. If that fails, check if selecting Do Not Auto-Update Languages in the Auto-Update menu of step 4 clears the problem.

   

7. If not, head to Offline Speech Recognition and tap on Installed.
8. Then open the problematic language like English (US) and tap on Download or Update.
9. Afterward, check if the Speech Services problem is cleared.
10. If the issue persists, head to the Manage Language Settings of the phone and long-press the problematic language (like English).
11. Now select Uninstall and again long-press the problematic language.
12. Then choose Download or Update and check if the download issue of Speech Services is cleared.
13. If that did not work, uninstall the problematic language and restart the phone.
14. Upon restart, connect the phone through a VPN and then download the problematic language to check if that resolves the issue.

Reinstall or Disable Speech Services by Google

The Speech Services may keep on showing the downloading notification if the app’s installation is corrupt or incompatible with the phone. Here, reinstalling or disabling (in the case of a system app) the Speech Services may solve the problem. Keep in mind that some users can uninstall speech services by Google, whereas, others may have to disable the app. In the case of disabling the app, some of the other apps (like Google Assistant) may fail to operate.

1. Launch the Google Play Store and search for Speech Services by Google.
2. Now open the result of the Speech Services and tap on Uninstall. If asked to, select Update. In the case of a system app, a user may tap on Disable and if asked to, choose to Install the Factory Version.

   

3. Once done, restart the phone and upon restart, reinstall the Speech Services by Google and hopefully, it will be clear of the download issue.

   

If none of the above worked, then resetting the phone to its factory defaults may clear the issue.