Google Workspace Changes

Developers can now build Google Chat apps using the Workspace add-on framework for building single apps across multiple Workspace applications.

The ability for developers to build Google Chat apps using the Workspace add-on framework is now generally available. This framework allows developers to build and maintain a single application that functions across various Workspace apps, including Gmail, Calendar, Drive, and Chat. This simplifies development, administration, and end-user experience by enabling features like link previews, task automation, external service notifications, and combining third-party data within Workspace.

NotebookLM's Studio panel now supports generating shareable links for Audio and Video Overviews within your domain.

The Studio panel in NotebookLM has been upgraded to allow users to generate shareable links for content such as Audio Overviews and Video Overviews. It's important to note that these links are restricted to sharing within your domain, and only users with explicit access to your Notebook will be able to view the shared content.

NotebookLM's Studio panel now allows generating multiple Audio Overviews within a single notebook.

The Studio panel in NotebookLM has been upgraded to enable users to generate multiple Audio Overviews from a single notebook. This enhancement provides flexibility, allowing users to create Audio Overviews in different languages from the same source material or to produce multiple Audio Overviews each focusing on distinct subsections of their sources.

Introducing Video Overviews in NotebookLM, allowing users to turn documents and other content into AI-narrated explainer videos.

NotebookLM now introduces Video Overviews, an enhancement to the existing Audio Overviews. This feature enables users to transform documents, slides, and charts into engaging explainer videos, complete with AI-narrated walkthroughs and visual elements extracted from the source material. Users can also customize these video overviews by defining topics, learning goals, and target audiences. Currently, this feature is available to users over 18 and is rolling out in English.

Audit log changes for Google Meet hardware settings will now be found under "Application setting" instead of "Chromebox for meetings device setting change".

Starting August 7, 2025, audit logs for specific Google Meet hardware settings like 'Release channel' and 'Alert recipients' will transition from being logged under 'Chromebox for meetings device setting change' to 'Change Application Setting,' 'Create Application Setting,' or 'Delete Application Setting.' This update is part of Google's effort to remove outdated product references and streamline the audit log experience. By August 28, 2025, these logs will solely appear under the new 'Application setting' categories.

Increased limits to Gemini 2.5 Pro for Gemini for Education users, free of charge.

Gemini for Education now offers significantly higher limits for Gemini 2.5 Pro, making premium AI models more accessible to students and educators free of charge. This update, building on last month's announcement of Gemini for Education, provides enhanced capabilities like personalized quizzes, step-by-step topic breakdown, and brainstorming tools. Gemini 2.5 Pro is available by default to all Gemini app users within Google Workspace Education Fundamentals, Standard, and Plus subscriptions, providing enterprise-grade data protection.

Thumbnail previews now appear when hovering over a video's progress bar in Google Drive, allowing quick navigation.

Starting July 22, 2025, when hovering over a newly uploaded video’s progress bar in Google Drive, users will see a thumbnail preview that enables quick viewing and navigation to specific parts of the video. This enhancement aims to improve productivity and the overall video viewing experience within Google Drive by allowing users to easily find specific moments in their videos. This feature is only available for newly uploaded videos.

Introduction of Productivity Planner Gem to streamline work by integrating with Gmail, Calendar, and Drive.

A new pre-made Gem, "Productivity Planner," is introduced to enhance user organization and time management. This Gem efficiently gathers information from Gmail, Calendar, and Drive, providing users with overviews of urgent emails, calendar events, and assisting in prioritizing tasks. It is available for Google Workspace Business Plus, Standard, Enterprise Plus, Standard, Gemini Enterprise, Gemini Business, and Google AI Ultra for Business customers, provided Google Workspace Apps are enabled.

Enterprise security and privacy controls for Google Workspace with Gemini, including prompt injection mitigation and granular admin controls.

Google Workspace with Gemini offers robust enterprise-grade security and privacy, ensuring customer data confidentiality and compliance with regulations like HIPAA and FedRAMP High. It features a layered defense strategy against prompt injection attacks and provides granular user access and data security controls, empowering administrators to safely deploy AI tools like the Gemini app, Gemini in Workspace apps, and NotebookLM.

Google Cloud Community forum is migrating to a new Discourse platform on July 22, 2025.

The official Google Cloud Community forum, a vital resource for Google Workspace administrators to discuss features and gain insights, is transitioning to a new and improved forum experience hosted on Discourse, effective July 22, 2025. Users are directed to a dedicated post for further details, including key dates and FAQs regarding this migration.

Google AI Ultra for Business add-on is now available in over 75 additional countries, including EU.

The Google AI Ultra for Business add-on, offering premium AI features and next-generation AI tools, is now expanded to over 75 additional countries, including those in the EU. This add-on is available for Google Workspace Business Starter, Standard, Plus, and Enterprise Starter, Standard, Plus customers. Access to Gemini app, NotebookLM, Gemini in Workspace, and Flow is available in all selling countries, with some limitations for Whisk and Project Mariner.

Gemini's AI capabilities are now available within Google Docs on iOS devices, allowing users to understand, summarize, and query documents on mobile.

Google Workspace users can now access Gemini's AI features directly within the Google Docs app on iOS devices (iOS 16+), supporting over 20 languages. This integration enables users to quickly get summaries of long documents, ask specific questions about content, and draft initial plans. While features like "Help me write" and image generation are not yet available on mobile, this update enhances on-the-go productivity by allowing users to interact with documents more effectively without switching applications. It is available for various Google Workspace Business and Enterprise plans, as well as those with Gemini Education or Gemini Business/Enterprise add-ons.

AppSheet Enterprise Plus users can now use AI Tasks powered by Gemini to extract and categorize data within automations.

AppSheet Enterprise Plus users can now integrate a new AI Task, powered by Gemini, into their automations. This allows for automatic extraction of key information from photos and PDFs, and categorization/routing of incoming requests based on content. Users can also test individual workflow steps with the integrated AI Task Step Testing feature. Additional improvements include support for REF type columns and unstructured text data as inputs. The AppSheet admin console now displays credit usage.

Users can now link Google Calendar appointment booking pages directly when composing emails in Gmail.

Google is making it easier to share your availability by allowing users to insert Google Calendar appointment booking pages directly into email drafts in Gmail. By clicking the Calendar icon, users can select an existing booking page or create a new one to embed. This feature aims to streamline scheduling, reduce back-and-forth communication, and is particularly useful when arranging meetings with external contacts whose calendars are not visible.

Migration of files from Microsoft SharePoint Online to Google Drive is now generally available via the New Data Migration service.

The functionality to migrate files from Microsoft SharePoint Online to Google Drive, previously in open beta, is now generally available through the New Data Migration service. This service allows admins to transfer data from SharePoint Online sites, including document libraries, folders, files, and associated permissions, facilitating a smooth transition to Google Workspace. The migration process supports up to 100 SharePoint Online sites at a time to Shared Drives, provides comprehensive reporting, and offers delta updates for newly added or modified files.