MOUNTAIN VIEW, California, April 9, 2026, 05:07 PDT
- Google is rolling out “Notebooks” in Gemini on the web first for Google AI Ultra, Pro and Plus subscribers. 1
- The feature lets users group chats, files and custom instructions around one topic and sync that material with NotebookLM. 1
- Mobile, free users and more European countries are due later, while under-18, Workspace and Education accounts are excluded for now. 1
Google said on Wednesday it is rolling out a new “Notebooks” feature in Gemini, giving users a place to store chats, documents and instructions around one topic and carry that material into NotebookLM. The first release starts on the web for Google AI Ultra, Pro and Plus subscribers. 1
The move is meant to make Gemini more useful for work that spans more than one chat session, such as studying, research or drafting. It also puts Google more directly into a market where OpenAI, Anthropic and Microsoft already offer project-style AI workspaces that keep files, context and chat history in one place. 1
Alphabet is pushing the feature as it tries to turn heavy AI spending into broader use and paid adoption. Chief Executive Sundar Pichai said in February that Gemini had passed 750 million monthly users and 8 million paid enterprise seats, adding that Google was seeing “significantly higher engagement per user” after Gemini 3. 2
Rebecca Zapfel, a senior product manager at Google, wrote that users should think of notebooks as “personal knowledge bases shared across Google products, starting in Gemini.” From Gemini’s side panel, users can create a notebook, move earlier chats into it, upload PDFs and documents, and add custom instructions to shape later responses. 1
Google said the notebooks sync automatically with NotebookLM, its AI research tool built around a user’s own source material. That lets someone start in Gemini, switch to NotebookLM for Video Overviews and Infographics, then return to Gemini to draft a summary, outline or plan from the same files. 1
The company is also using the feature to separate its paid tiers. Google support pages show NotebookLM limits ranging from 50 sources per notebook on standard accounts to 600 on Ultra, with higher daily caps for chats, audio, video and reports on higher-priced plans. 3
This week’s launch builds on an earlier link between the two products. Google told Workspace users in January that they could add NotebookLM notebooks as a source inside Gemini, and the new release turns that connection into a dedicated notebook space inside the consumer app. 4
Google is not alone here. OpenAI says ChatGPT Projects groups chats, reference files and custom instructions in one place; Anthropic says Claude Projects offers self-contained workspaces with their own chat histories and knowledge bases; Microsoft says Copilot Notebooks combines chats, files, meeting notes and links for task-focused work. 5
But the first rollout is narrow. Google gave no exact date for mobile or free access beyond “coming weeks,” and said Notebooks in Gemini are not available for users under 18 or on Workspace and Education accounts, a limit that could slow adoption in schools and offices even as the company pushes the feature more widely.
