Gmail launches AI inbox and overviews with Gemini
Google has been sneaking in its AI assistant, Gemini, into Gmail for some time. Now Gmail is apparently "entering the Gemini era" officially with an inbox assistant, according to a blog post by Gmail's VP of product, Blake Barnes, published yesterday.
One feature Gmail's launching is AI Overviews, which summarize information in your inbox, apparently building on the already-launched autogenerated email summaries. AI Overview can also be able to answer questions about what's in your inbox, but this feature will only be available to Google AI Pro and Ultra subscribers.
AI Inbox, another addition, is designed to "filter out the clutter" so you can focus on the most important emails. Features include personalized briefings, highlighting to-dos, and identifying emails from contacts.
AI Inbox analysis "happens securely with the privacy protections you expect from Google, keeping your data under your control," the blog post states.
Starting yesterday, all Gmail users can use Help Me Write for email drafts. An update to Smart Replies, called Suggested Replies, also launched for everyone. Gmail also now features a Proofread tool for grammar, tone, and style — but this is only available to Google AI Pro and Ultra subscribers.
In addition to the blog post, Google published a YouTube video about the new AI tools:
The top (unpinned) comment reads, "Nobody is going to sound human anymore."
Last year, some Gmail users began noticing the "Help Me Write" prompt, complete with the sparkle icon that has become synonymous with AI. Mashable published a guide on how to turn that off.