For many of us, our phone alarm is the last line of defense between a restful night’s sleep and missing an important morning meeting. So when alarms suddenly stop working—as some Google Pixel owners have recently discovered—it’s more than just a small inconvenience. And, in this case, the Pixel alarm bug is a bit of a mystery as well.
Over the past week, a growing number of Pixel users—particularly those with the Pixel 9 series—have reported a curious issue: alarms that simply… don’t go off. In some cases, they’re delayed. In others, they don’t go off at all, sometimes with a cryptic message saying the alarm was “unable to fire.” A few users have even found their alarms mysteriously toggled off completely, despite not touching a thing.
Naturally, Reddit lit up like a 7 a.m. snooze button, with frustrated posts and frantic comment threads attempting to diagnose this new Pixel alarm bug. Unfortunately, this isn’t the first time we’ve seen issues popping up on Google’s Pixel devices—previous bugs included a security issue that let anyone unlock your Pixel phone. Updates are always likely to introduce some kind of issue along the way.
Theories? Oh, there are plenty. Some point to a recent update to the Clock app as a possible culprit. Others suggest Gemini, Google’s AI assistant, may be getting a little overzealous—turning off all alarms when you only meant to cancel one. While these ideas sound plausible, nothing has been confirmed, and the true cause remains as elusive as a nap during an important midday meeting.
What makes the Pixel alarm bug particularly frustrating is its unpredictability. There’s no clear pattern. No warning. Just a silent phone where a blaring alarm should’ve been. For users who rely on their devices not just to wake up, but to manage medications, appointments, or shift work, the stakes are more than just being a little late.
As of now, there’s been no official word from Google. No acknowledgment, no fix, and no clear guidance for users trying to avoid another rude awakening—except, well, not getting one at all.
In the meantime, many are hedging their bets with backup alarms on old phones, smart speakers, or anything else that still beeps when it’s supposed to. Until there’s a fix, trusting the Clock app on Pixel phones may feel a bit like playing a game of alarm roulette.
