Email volume is at an all-time high, Google says, and «managing your inbox and the flow of information has become as important as the emails themselves.»
AI overview summarizes into to-do-lists
The biggest feature launched for your inbox today is undoubtedly the «AI Inbox,» which functions like a «personalized» briefing.
It can summarize and surface your emails based on your priorities, like those you email frequently, or maybe a due bill or a dentist appointment — and put them on top of an AI summary, giving you access to a to-do list and emails you are likely to want to respond to.
The AI Inbox is only available for «trusted testers» for now, but Google promises to make it more «broadly available» in the «coming months.»
Searchable AI Overviews
For the rest of us, there is AI Overviews for Gmail, that functions just like in Google Search. This feature will also condense entire conversations into a «concise summary of key points,» hopefully so you get relief from sifting through massive email threads to find that one specific piece of information.
It’s free for everyone as of today, but asking further questions of your email archive requires a Pro or Ultra subscription.
And for those more business-like and less personal emails, Google is offering a «Help Me Write»-feature, with new «Suggested Replies» that supposedly use your own tone and style, free for all users.
There is also an advanced, Grammarly-like proofread feature for your emails that needs a Pro or Ultra sub.
And if you don’t like these new features in your inbox, they are cumbersome to turn off. The only option is whether you would like to use «Smart Features» or not — so turning this off will also remove «package tracking cards, calendar integration, and loyalty cards in Wallet,» writes Ars Technica.
Read more: Google’s launch page. Writeups on The Verge, 9to5Google, Ars Technica.