Google has announced a major update to its Gmail service by integrating advanced Gemini AI-powered capabilities designed to make email management faster and more intuitive. These enhancements, beginning to roll out in phases, bring new tools for summarising message threads, improved reply suggestions, and built-in writing assistance aimed at helping users save time and cut through the noise of crowded inboxes.
What’s New With Gemini in Gmail
Automated Summaries for Email Threads
One of the headline features is the ability for Gmail to generate AI-based summaries of long email conversations. Instead of scrolling through dozens of replies to catch up, users will see a concise overview that highlights the key points of the discussion.
Read: Arista’s AI Growth and Campus Network Challenge
This is designed to help users quickly understand the context and essential information buried in lengthy threads.
These summaries — similar in function to other AI overviews seen in Google Search — may appear automatically for messages deemed complex or lengthy. Users can potentially opt out of automatic summarisation if they prefer manual control.
Context-Aware Replies and Proofreading Tools
Google is also enhancing Gmail’s suggested replies feature. Instead of generic canned responses, the new suggestions draw on the broader context of the inbox and recent threads to propose more relevant, on-point replies that better match the tone and purpose of the email.
Additionally, Gmail’s built-in proofreading tools — already part of its AI suite — are being improved with Gemini’s capabilities. These tools assist users by checking grammar and clarity as they compose messages, making it easier to craft polished, professional emails without needing external apps.
AI Inbox and Future Plans
Alongside summarisation and writing tools, Google is experimenting with an “AI Inbox” feature that transforms the inbox into a personalized task list. This feature — initially tested with a small group of users — highlights actionable items that may require attention, such as follow-ups or appointments, based on patterns in emails.
While some of these tools are already showing up for U.S. users in English, Google expects to expand availability and language support over time. Premium subscribers may also gain additional capabilities tied to Google One AI Pro and Ultra plans.
