Some Gmail users on iOS can now chat about their inbox with Google's Gemini chatbot directly within the app, the company announced this week. The feature, called Gmail Q&A, was first rolled out to Android users in August.
Google One AI Premium subscribers or Google Workspace accounts with Gemini Business, Enterprise, Education, and Education Premium add-ons are now available on iOS.
This feature can help you answer specific email questions, such as “How much did your company spend on its last marketing event?” You can ask Gemini to show you unread messages from a specific sender or summarize emails about a topic in your inbox. For example, you could say, “We'll email you about our quarterly plans.”
Image credit: Google
Google says Gmail Q&A will initially be able to search for information from your inbox, but in the future it will also be able to search for information from Drive.
Gmail's classic search bar won't be removed, but a Gemini button will be added next to it. The idea behind this feature is to have AI used when trying to find specific information in an email, rather than searching for a specific email in the traditional way.
Considering that Google markets features like Gmail Q&A to encourage people to sign up for monthly subscriptions, it's unlikely that Gmail Q&A will be available to free Gmail users anytime soon. These features are probably Google's biggest opportunity to generate revenue through Gemini.
Like almost every other technology company, Google has added AI capabilities to existing products such as Google Docs, Gmail, and Google Calendar.
The enhancements come a day after Gmail introduced revamped “Summary Cards” to better organize your inbox and help you track your packages, check in for flights, set reminders, and check paid bills. You'll be able to do all the markings and more within the email app.
Just as Apple introduced some Gmail-like features to its Mail app in iOS 18, Google is rolling out these new updates to its email service to ensure its products remain competitive.