Google has introduced Workspace Intelligence, an underlying AI system that connects Gemini to data across Gmail, Chat, Calendar, Drive, Docs, Sheets, and Slides. Instead of answering questions based on what a user types into a prompt, Gemini can now draw on emails, files, chat threads, and calendar entries automatically to provide context-aware responses.
According to Google, Workspace Intelligence builds what the company calls a knowledge graph from a user’s scattered emails, chats, and files. The system is designed to understand relationships between projects, colleagues, and documents, and to learn a user’s writing style and formatting preferences over time.
What changes in each app
Several Workspace apps are receiving updates as part of this rollout:
- Gmail now includes AI Overviews in search. Users can type natural language questions into the search bar and receive summaries drawn from multiple email threads.
- Google Drive gains AI Overviews in search and a new Ask Gemini feature, both now generally available. A new Drive Projects feature lets teams group related files and folders into a shared knowledge base.
- Google Docs can generate image infographics based on business data, edit multiple images at once for visual consistency, and triage and respond to comments automatically.
- Google Sheets can now build entire spreadsheets from a single natural language prompt. Google states that Gemini in Sheets achieved a 70.48 percent success rate on the SpreadsheetBench dataset, a benchmark for autonomous manipulation of complex spreadsheets.
- Google Chat now features Ask Gemini, described as a command line for work. It offers a daily briefing, can complete tasks like generating documents or scheduling meetings, and connects to third-party tools including Asana, Jira, and Salesforce.
Google’s automation tool Workspace Studio also gains the ability to include Gems, custom AI assistants with specific knowledge bases, as steps within automated workflows.
Admin controls and privacy
Google says administrators can control which data sources Workspace Intelligence draws from within the Admin console. If a data source is disabled, Gemini will not actively search it, though users can still reference specific files manually.
Google states that user data is not reviewed by humans, not used for advertising, and not used to train AI models outside of Workspace without permission. Administrators can restrict data processing and storage to the US or EU. Client-side encryption is available for organizations that want to prevent access to sensitive data, including from Google itself.
Most of the new features are available to Business Standard and Plus, Enterprise Standard and Plus, and consumer Google AI Pro and Ultra subscribers. Some features, such as AI Overviews in Gmail search, also reach Business Starter and Enterprise Starter plans.
Sources:
- Introducing Workspace Intelligence
- Introducing Workspace Intelligence with admin controls
- New Gemini capabilities in Google Docs help you go from blank page to brilliance
- Build and edit complex spreadsheets with Gemini in Google Sheets
- Ask Gemini in Drive now generally available
- AI Overviews in Drive now generally available
- Search faster and smarter with AI Overviews in Gmail search
- Use your Gems in your Google Workspace Studio flows
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