Google is quietly rethinking what an inbox should do—and it’s no longer just about email.
This week, Google began testing a new “AI Inbox” tab inside Gmail, designed to automatically read a user’s emails, summarise what matters, and surface suggested actions. The feature, powered by Google’s Gemini AI model, is part of the company’s broader push to turn everyday software into always-on digital assistants.
Instead of showing messages in a familiar chronological list, the AI Inbox acts more like a daily briefing. At the top, Gmail generates a short set of recommended tasks—replying to a coach, rescheduling an appointment, paying an upcoming fee. Below that, it highlights key topics worth reviewing, all linked back to the original emails for context.
It’s a subtle shift, but an important one. Google isn’t just helping users search their inbox anymore—it’s trying to interpret it.
A second attempt at inbox intelligence
This isn’t Google’s first shot at AI-powered email summaries. Earlier experiments, launched when the company’s chatbot still went by the name Bard, were widely criticised for hallucinations and incorrect interpretations. In some cases, Gmail’s AI pulled the wrong details or confidently suggested actions that didn’t make sense.
Google believes the technology has matured. Gemini now underpins AI features across Gmail, Search, and other Workspace apps, and the company says accuracy has improved enough to justify deeper automation. Still, the familiar warning remains: Gemini “can make mistakes.”
That disclaimer matters, because inboxes are messy reflections of real life. A single missed detail—a wrong date, a misunderstood request—can quickly turn from a minor error into a real-world problem.
Privacy, by design—or by necessity
One of the biggest questions around an AI that reads your inbox is privacy. Google says the data processed by the AI Inbox won’t be used to train its foundational models, a reassurance aimed at users wary of email content being absorbed into larger AI systems.
According to Google, the AI features are optional and can be turned off entirely. The company is framing the AI Inbox as an assistant, not a mandate—at least for now.
Free AI, with a paid ceiling
Alongside the AI Inbox, Google also expanded access to several Gemini-powered Gmail tools. Features like “Help Me Write,” which drafts emails from short prompts, and AI summaries for long threads are now free for all users.
Paying subscribers on Google’s Pro and Ultra plans get more advanced capabilities, including inbox-wide topic summaries and AI-powered proofreading. The message is clear: basic AI is becoming table stakes, while deeper automation sits behind a paywall.
The bigger picture
Email has barely changed in decades. Google’s AI Inbox suggests the company sees that stagnation as an opportunity.
If the system works reliably, it could save users from digging through years of accumulated messages just to remember what they owe, where they need to be, or who they forgot to reply to. If it doesn’t, it risks becoming another clever feature users learn not to trust.
For now, Gmail’s AI Inbox feels like a preview of where productivity software is heading—less about tools you control, more about systems that try to think ahead. Whether that’s helpful or unsettling may depend on how often the AI gets it right.