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Google recently announced that it’s rolling out new AI-based productivity features for Docs, Sheets, Slides, and Drive, which will now use Gemini for select tasks. Available now (in beta) for Google AI Ultra and Pro subscribers, Google says that the updates are designed to speed things up for users.
For Google Docs, users can now generate complex first drafts (including newsletters and layouts) by simply pointing Gemini toward existing meeting minutes and event lists. The tool can also use “Match Writing Style” to create a consistent voice across different documents, and “Match Doc Format” to instantly fill up a selected template with data pulled directly from a user’s emails and reservations.
As for Gemini in Sheets, users can describe complex tasks such as organizing a cross-country move, and Gemini will automatically set-up the necessary checklists, contact lists, and quote trackers using information found in a user’s inbox. Another new addition is the “Fill with Gemini” feature, which can generate text, categorize data and summarize data using Google Search.
Meanwhile, Gemini in Slides now comes with a few more useful tricks. The update will allow AI to generate fully editable slides and diagrams that will also align with a deck’s existing theme. Google has also mentioned an upcoming feature that will allow for the generation of entire, polished presentations from a single prompt, although users will of course have to handle the content narrative.
Finally, Google Drive will feature a new “AI Overview” that will appear at the top of search results to summarize relevant files with citations, so that users can get answers without needing to fully open a document. Google is also adding an “Ask Gemini in Drive” feature which will let users perform cross-app analysis, such as selecting a folder of tax documents and asking the AI to generate a list of questions for a tax advisor based on that specific data.
In terms of availability, Google says that the new features are currently accessible in English for global subscribers of Gemini’s top-tier plans, although the Drive functionality will initially be limited to users in the United States.
