Google Announces ‘Personal Intelligence’ Feature In Gemini That Can Access Your Photos And Emails

Google has launched a new feature called Personal Intelligence in its Gemini app. The feature is currently available as a beta version in the United States. It aims to give users more personalised and useful answers by allowing Gemini to connect with different Google services.

With this update, Gemini can now work across a user's Google ecosystem, including Google Search, Gmail, Photos, and YouTube history. Google says this is a step towards making Gemini smarter, more proactive, and better suited to individual needs.

Smarter Responses Using Your Own Data

Earlier, Gemini could fetch information from connected apps. However, with this new update, the AI can now understand and analyse data across these services to offer deeper insights.

For example, Gemini can reason through emails, photos, and search activity to provide suggestions or answers that are more relevant to the user. This makes interactions more meaningful, as responses are based on personal context instead of general information.

Google has also confirmed that this feature will soon be added to Search in AI Mode, expanding its use beyond the Gemini app.

Who Can Use This Feature Right Now

Personal Intelligence is being rolled out in phases. It became available on January 14 for Google AI Pro and AI Ultra subscribers in the U.S. Google said all eligible users should receive access within a week.

Once enabled, the feature works on the web, Android, and iOS platforms. It also supports all models available in the Gemini model picker. Google plans to expand the feature to more countries and eventually bring it to free users as well.

At present, the feature is limited to personal Google accounts. It is not available for Workspace users, including business, enterprise, or education accounts.

Privacy and User Control Remain Key

Google has stressed that privacy is central to this feature. Personal Intelligence is turned off by default, giving users full control over whether they want to connect their apps.

Users can choose which apps to link and which to leave disconnected. Even after enabling the feature, Gemini will not personalise every response automatically. Users can also stop Gemini from using past conversations by turning off the "Past Gemini chats" option.

Google allows users to manage or delete past chats at any time. Feedback options, such as retrying a response or using the thumbs-down button, help users control how personalisation works.

Why This Update Matters

Since Personal Intelligence is coming to Google Search's AI Mode, it could change how content visibility is tracked. Highly personalised results may make it harder to measure reach and performance, especially for publishers and marketers.

This update signals a major shift in how AI tools interact with users, focusing more on personal relevance while keeping privacy in user hands.