A large number of Google’s AI initiatives are now centred in the right sidebar of the Workspace apps. At its I/O developer conference earlier, Google announced that Gemini 1.5 Pro, its most recent mainstream language model, will be available in the sidebar of Google Drive, Gmail, Sheets, and Slides documents. All of those apps will use the same virtual assistant, but the important thing to note is that it will be aware of everything you have saved anywhere.
Gemini appears to be the intended tool for smoothly integrating all of Google’s Workspace apps. Google users have long attempted to utilize Gemini to perform complex, multi-app tasks, such as sending an email based on data they are viewing in Sheets or adding a reminder to reply to the email they were presently viewing, according to Aparna Pappu, general manager and vice president of Workspace. Additionally, Gemini can respond to inquiries without requiring you to jump between apps because it has access to all of your files, emails, and papers.
At a press briefing held before the search giant’s I/O conference, Pappu used the example of looking up details about a New York Knicks game. “I could ask, ‘What time do doors open for the Knicks game?'” and I won’t be searching the internet for answers, which will only provide me with general knowledge. I need the information from my ticket, which is in my inbox somewhere as a PDF. Gemini can locate that data, and according to Pappu, early adopters are picking up on how to use it to locate items more rapidly.
According to Pappu, receipts have proven to be a popular use case among early testers. Ask Gemini to locate and arrange every receipt in your Google account instead of searching through all of your files, emails, and other data. “And if you select the prompt that reads, ‘Put my expenses in a Drive folder,’ Gemini can then compile all of them into a Sheet,” she continues.
The Workspace team appears to be focusing on leveraging Gemini to assist users in getting things done as well as carrying out tasks on their behalf, which is consistent with a lot of Google’s announcements made during the I/O conference. Pappu discussed how well-liked Gmail’s “Help me write” function has been, particularly on mobile devices where users are less inclined to type. Google wants to start limiting the model’s tendency to make mistakes and hallucinations by grounding the model on your data rather than the entirety of the internet.
The new sidebar isn’t for everyone just yet, at least not yet. A small group of early testers can see it now, and paying Gemini users will be able to access it starting next month. However, according to Pappu, Google is considering how it might leverage on-device models to expand the features’ availability over time, so it looks like the days of rummaging around Google Drive for that long-lost PDF might be coming to an end, in due course.
Olagoke Ajibola is a creative writer and content producer with an eye for details and excellence. He has a demonstrated history of telling stories for TV, Film and Online. Aside from being fascinated by the power of imagination, his other interest are travel, sport, reading and meeting people.
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