Google revamps Gemini app with AI updates

On May 19 at Google I/O, Google said the Gemini app will get Daily Brief, a new interface, Gemini Omni, and Gemini Spark as it expands the service beyond chat.

Daily Brief is rolling out to Google AI subscribers in the US and uses a user inbox, calendar, and tasks to surface priorities and suggested next steps.

Google said Spark is in testing and will reach Google AI Ultra subscribers next week, while Omni is rolling out to Google Flow and YouTube Shorts for Google AI subscribers.

The company also changed the app layout to show key points first and said Gemini has more than 900 million monthly users.

🔗 Source: Google

🧠 Food for thought

Implications, context, and why it matters.

Google’s new AI features fit a layered subscription plan

Google AI has three paid tiers called Plus, Pro, and Ultra 1.
Spark is only available on Ultra. Google says it is coming soon for Google AI Ultra subscribers in the U.S. 1.
Daily Brief is rolling out to Google AI Plus, Pro, and Ultra subscribers in the U.S. 1.
Google bundles AI access with other services to keep people inside its products. Pro includes up to 5 terabytes of storage and US$10 a month in developer cloud credits. Ultra starts at 20 terabytes, adds US$40 a month in credits, and includes Google Home Premium 1.

New tools lean on Google’s ecosystem while Gemini trails in some areas

Some outside comparisons rate Gemini below rivals in a few areas. Claude from Anthropic often fares better on instruction following and writing style. ChatGPT often does better on everyday answers in at least some tests 2.
Gemini stands out in video generation with Veo 3, Google’s AI video model. One comparison put it well ahead of rivals 2. It can also analyze audio and video files. One comparison said ChatGPT did not support audio analysis at that time 3.
Daily Brief pulls from inbox and calendar. That uses Google’s broader product lineup, which rivals cannot easily copy 1.
That matters as people spread their AI use across several tools. ChatGPT’s traffic share fell from 86.7% to 64.5% over the past year 3.