In the AI chatbot wars, Google thinks the key to retaining users is serving up content they can\u2019t get elsewhere, like answers shaped by their internet habits.<\/p>\n
On Thursday, the company announced Gemini<\/a> with personalization, a new \u201cexperimental capability\u201d for its Gemini chatbot apps that lets Gemini draw on other Google apps and services to deliver customized responses. Gemini with personalization can tap a user\u2019s activities and preferences across Google\u2019s product ecosystem to deliver tailored answers to queries, according to Gemini product director Dave Citron.<\/p>\n \u201cThese updates are all designed to make Gemini feel less like a tool and more like a natural extension of you, anticipating your needs with truly personalized assistance,\u201d Citron wrote in a blog post provided to TechCrunch. \u201cEarly testers have found Gemini with personalization helpful for brainstorming and getting personalized recommendations.\u201d <\/p>\n Gemini with personalization, which will integrate with Google Search before expanding to additional Google services like Google Photos and YouTube in the months to come, arrives as chatbot makers including OpenAI attempt to differentiate their virtual assistants with unique and compelling functionality. OpenAI recently rolled out<\/a> the ability for ChatGPT on macOS to directly edit code in supported apps, while Amazon is preparing to launch an \u201cagentic\u201d reimagining<\/a> of Alexa.<\/p>\n Citron said Gemini with personalization is powered by Google\u2019s experimental Gemini 2.0 Flash Thinking Experimental AI model<\/a>, a so-called \u201creasoning\u201d model that can determine whether personal data from a Google service, like a user\u2019s Search history, is likely to \u201cenhance\u201d an answer. Narrow questions informed by likes and dislikes, like \u201cWhere should I go on vacation this summer?\u201d and \u201cWhat would you suggest I learn as a new hobby?,\u201d will benefit the most, Citron continued.<\/p>\n \u201cFor example, you can ask Gemini for restaurant recommendations and it will reference your recent food-related searches,\u201d he said, \u201cor ask for travel advice and Gemini will respond based on destinations you\u2019ve previously searched.\u201d<\/p>\n If this all sounds like a privacy nightmare, well, it could be. It\u2019s not tough to imagine a scenario in which Gemini inadvertently airs someone\u2019s sensitive info.<\/p>\n That\u2019s probably why Google is making Gemini with personalization opt-in \u2014 and excluding users under the age of 18. Gemini will ask for permission before connecting to Google Search history and other apps, Citron said, and show which data sources were used to customize the bot\u2019s responses.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen you\u2019re using the personalization experiment, Gemini displays a clear banner with a link to easily disconnect your Search history,\u201d Citron said. \u201cGemini will only access your Search history when you\u2019ve selected Gemini with personalization, when you\u2019ve given Gemini permission to connect to your Search history, and when you have Web & App Activity<\/a> on.\u201d<\/p>\n Gemini with personalization will roll out to Gemini users on the web (except for Google Workspace and Google for Education customers) starting Thursday in the app\u2019s model drop-down menu and \u201cgradually\u201d come to mobile after that. It\u2019ll be available in over 40 languages in \u201cthe majority\u201d of countries, Citron said, excluding the European Economic Area, Switzerland, and the U.K. <\/p>\n Citron indicated that the feature may not be free forever. <\/p>\n \u201cFuture usage limits may apply,\u201d he wrote in the blog post. \u201cWe\u2019ll continue to gather user feedback on the most useful applications of this capability.\u201d<\/p>\n As added incentives to stick with Gemini, Google announced updated models, research capabilities, and app connectors for the platform.<\/p>\n Subscribers to Gemini Advanced, Google\u2019s $20-per-month premium subscription, can now use a standalone version of 2.0 Flash Thinking Experimental that supports file attachments; integrations with apps like Google Calendar, Notes, and Tasks; and a 1-million-token context window. \u201cContext window\u201d refers to text that the model can consider at any given time \u2014 1 million tokens is equivalent to around 750,000 words.<\/p>\n Google said that this latest version of 2.0 Flash Thinking Experimental is faster and more efficient than the model it is replacing, and can better handle prompts that involve multiple apps, like \u201cLook up an easy cookie recipe on YouTube, add the ingredients to my shopping list, and find me grocery stores that are still open nearby.\u201d<\/p>\n Perhaps in response to pressure from OpenAI and its newly launched tools<\/a> for in-depth research, Google is also enhancing Deep Research<\/a>, its Gemini feature that searches across the web to compile reports on a subject. Deep Research now exposes its \u201cthinking\u201d steps and uses 2.0 Flash Thinking Experimental as the default model, which should result in \u201chigher-quality\u201d reports that are more \u201cdetailed\u201d and \u201cinsightful,\u201d Google said. <\/p>\n Deep Research is now free to try for all Gemini users, and Google has increased usage limits for Gemini Advanced customers.<\/p>\n Free Gemini users are also getting Gems<\/a>, Google\u2019s topic-focused customizable chatbots within Gemini, which previously required a Gemini Advanced subscription. And in the coming weeks, all Gemini users will be able to interact with Google Photos to, for example, look up photos from a recent trip, Google said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n![\"Google](\"https:\/\/techcrunch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/Disconnect-from-Search.png?w=680\")
![\"Google](\"https:\/\/techcrunch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/03\/Gemini-with-Personalization.png?w=680\")
New models, connectors, and more<\/h2>\n