Google is stepping up the integration of its AI assistant, Gemini, into Gmail by launching automatic email summary cards. This new feature, announced on Thursday, means users will no longer have to manually click a button to summarize lengthy emails—Gemini will do this automatically where it detects a need, presenting a concise overview at the top of the email.
Originally introduced last year, Gemini previously offered email summaries only when users selected that option from within Gmail’s side panel. Other capabilities included suggesting replies, drafting emails, and providing overviews of long email threads. Now, the AI summaries will appear by default, actively providing users with rapid overviews as email conversations continue to evolve and update.
The rollout underscores just how rapidly artificial intelligence is becoming commonplace in digital communication tools, though recent experiences have shown that AI-generated summaries can still be problematic. Apple, for instance, temporarily halted its own AI-generated notification summaries earlier this year after inaccuracies emerged in its news headlines. Likewise, Google’s AI has itself faced issues in its Search Overviews feature, delivering occasionally inaccurate and low-quality content.
Gemini’s new email summaries will dynamically identify the key points and continuously adjust the summary as new replies arrive. However, users can still opt to manually request a summary by clicking a chip provided at the top of emails or through Gmail’s Gemini side panel.
Initially, the automated summaries are available only for English-language emails. Availability and activation defaults may vary depending on region—for example, smart features like these are disabled by default in Europe, the UK, Switzerland, and Japan. Elsewhere, Gmail users can manually activate or deactivate the feature through Gmail settings, and workspace administrators retain the option to disable these personalization settings for users through Google’s Admin console.
