Running late? Google Meet now uses AI to catch you up

Google plans to launch tons of new AI innovations at its Google Cloud Next conference, beginning today. But one of the most important could be one of its smallest: simply asking Gemini to get you caught up in a meeting.

By now, AI-powered transcriptions are relatively passe. Ditto for AI summaries. Now, as you quietly sidle in late for a virtual Google Meet meeting, you’ll be able to ask Gemini, “what did I miss?” and get caught up on what was discussed while you were dealing with a sick toddler.

Google said that this and additional capabilities — such as asking about specific action items or decisions — will be available in Meet later this quarter.

Google Cloud Next is also an opportunity for Google to add new features to other apps within Workspace, too. Here are some of the highlights:

• Audio docs: In the coming weeks, you’ll be able to ask Docs to read your document to you — or, alternatively, you can listen to documents as “audiobooks” during your commute.
• “Help me” in Sheets and Docs: One of the challenges in an app like Sheets is simply making sense of a worksheet full of data. “Help me analyze” is a new feature coming to Sheets later this year, where Gemini will simply eyeball your worksheet, highlight interesting data, and launch a few charts making sense of it all. The “help me refine” feature in Docs will debut in alpha later this quarter; instead of correcting your grammar, “help me refine” works to strengthen your argument or improve its structure.
• You can finally address @gemini in any Chat application.

In January, Google added its advanced AI capabilities to Workspace “for free:” no longer charging a premium for the AI features, but raising the price of the Workspace bundle nevertheless.