Google adds conversational AI to Gmail with new Live feature

On Tuesday, at Google’s annual developer conference, Google I/O 2026, the technology company announced an expansion of its AI Inbox functionality for Gmail. The update introduces a conversational AI feature called Gmail Live, which is powered by Google’s Gemini AI technology. Instead of typing traditional search terms to find buried messages, users can now ask questions directly about their inbox content. The tool is designed to help users locate specific details, such as flight times, dentist appointments, or school event details, by querying the system in natural language.

The new voice-powered feature is scheduled to roll out later this summer. Devanshi Bhandari, the product lead for Gmail, demonstrated the tool by asking it questions about things in the inbox, such as a child’s show-and-tell project, a class trip, and hotel and flight information for a trip to Detroit. Bhandari explained that “Gmail Live can answer naturally phrased questions, respond to follow-up questions, and pivot if you need to interrupt it.” During the demonstration, the tool showed an ability to understand nuances between different topics, pull granular details like hotel room numbers from emails, and infer unnamed individuals. While Google plans to expand other AI Inbox features to more subscription tiers, the Gmail Live feature will initially be limited to Google AI Ultra subscribers. Similar voice technology is also expected to come to Google’s note-taking application, Google Keep.

Notably, Gmail Live will not replace traditional Gmail search, remaining instead as an optional tool. Google appears to be taking a measured approach to this rollout, as the company may have learned that not everyone is ready for an AI-only experience. This caution follows a previous incident where Google “upgraded” Google Photos with AI-powered search to much backlash, which eventually led the company to roll back the feature and make the AI search optional after receiving numerous complaints.

Why it matters

Google is pushing to prove that its AI technology offers tangible, real-world utility for everyday consumers, moving beyond hype to solve common pain points like email management.