Android Gmail Users Can Now Chat with Gemini for Enhanced Email Management

Gmail users on Android can now engage directly with Google’s AI assistant, Gemini, regarding their emails within the Gmail app. On Thursday, Google announced the launch of the new Gmail Q&A feature for subscribers to Gemini, with plans to extend it to iOS devices soon.

With Gmail Q&A, users have access to Google Gemini as a personalized assistant capable of scanning your entire inbox. You can easily request summaries by saying something like, “Catch me up on the emails about quarterly planning.” Additionally, the feature allows you to inquire about specific information, such as, “How much did the company spend on the last marketing event?”

However, it’s essential to remember that occasional inaccuracies, or "hallucinations," may occur with any AI, so it’s wise to verify the information it provides.

Previously, to find information in Gmail, users relied on the search bar at the top of the interface. While this function remains intact, a Gemini button will now be added alongside the search bar. This change reflects Google’s strategic shift from traditional search methods toward AI-driven chat. Instead of manually searching for emails, Gmail is encouraging users to consult the AI chatbot for information summaries. Nevertheless, Gemini will still reference the original emails in its responses.

Subscribing users can access this feature by clicking the black star logo, the symbol for Gemini, located in the app’s top-right corner. Currently, the Gmail Q&A feature only interacts with your emails, but Google plans to integrate it with files in your Drive account in the future.

In June, Gmail Q&A was launched for web users subscribed to Gemini or Google One AI Premium, which costs around $20 a month for such AI functionalities, forming part of Google’s strategy to enhance its product suite around Gemini.

Free Gmail users are not expected to gain access to Gmail Q&A anytime soon. Instead, Google aims to justify the high subscription costs for Gemini by rolling out features like this one. The company is also working to incorporate Gemini across all its existing products, including Google Docs, Gmail, and Google Calendar, yet this upgrade comes with a cost. So far, these AI innovations represent Google’s most promising avenue for generating revenue through the Gemini platform.