Google expands Gemini Personal Intelligence globally, accessing Gmail, Drive, Photos for contextual responses

Google is rolling out Personal Intelligence to Gemini users worldwide following its US launch. The feature remains unavailable in the European Economic Area, Switzerland, and the UK.

Personal Intelligence accesses user data from Gmail, Calendar, Drive, Google Workspace apps, Google Photos, YouTube, Search, Maps, and other first-party Google services. The system uses this data to personalize responses without requiring users to provide context in their prompts.

How it works

According to Google, Personal Intelligence enables several use cases:

• Shopping recommendations that consider recent purchases, preferred brands, and style preferences, including matching accessories based on specific product details
• Tech troubleshooting using purchase receipt data to provide device-specific debugging steps, even when users don't remember exact product models
• Travel planning that factors in dietary preferences, airport gate locations, walking times, and flight schedules during layovers
• Custom itineraries based on past favorites and specific interests rather than generic recommendations
• Activity suggestions derived from inferred interests across multiple data sources

Privacy and controls

Personal Intelligence is explicitly opt-in. Users select which apps Gemini can access during setup. Once enabled, the feature activates by default for every prompt, but users can disable it via a toggle in the Tools menu.

Availability

The feature is launching first for Google AI Plus, Pro, and Ultra subscribers. Free Gemini users will receive access over the "next few weeks," according to Google.

The exclusion of European markets aligns with Google's approach to AI features in regions with stricter data privacy regulations under GDPR.

What this means

Personal Intelligence represents Google's strategy to differentiate Gemini by leveraging its ecosystem advantage—access to user data across Gmail, Photos, Maps, and other widely-used services. This approach directly competes with assistants like ChatGPT and Claude, which lack native access to users' email, calendars, and photo libraries. The opt-in requirement and regional restrictions reflect the ongoing tension between personalized AI capabilities and data privacy concerns, particularly in European markets where such features face regulatory scrutiny.