Gemini gets 'Projects' and expansion

Google is turning Gemini from a single long scroll of chats into something closer to a filing cabinet. A new Gemini feature called “Projects” has started appearing for some users on the web, with an “Add to project” option in the menu for individual conversations. Android Authority says the feature is still incomplete, because users can see the menu item but not reliably create a new project from it yet. (androidauthority.com) The basic idea is simple: instead of dumping every brainstorm, coding session, travel plan, and meeting prep into one sidebar, Gemini would let you group related chats into folders. That is already how many heavy users treat OpenAI’s ChatGPT, which Android Authority explicitly used as the comparison point for Gemini’s new Projects system. Google has reportedly been working on this since at least December, and the feature is only now beginning to surface in public. (androidauthority.com) This sounds small until you think about how people actually use chatbots after the first week. A casual user opens one chat, asks one question, and leaves. A daily user ends up with dozens or hundreds of threads, and the hard part stops being “what can the model do” and becomes “where did that conversation go.” The whole value of folders is not intelligence but retrieval. (androidauthority.com) Google may not even keep the name “Projects.” Android Authority says earlier code references suggested the feature could eventually be renamed “Notebooks,” which would line up more neatly with Google’s NotebookLM branding. That detail matters because it hints Google is still deciding whether this is just chat organization or a bigger workspace concept. (androidauthority.com) At the same time, Gemini’s Android app is being reshaped to look and behave more like the rest of Android. Android Police, citing an Android Authority application package teardown of Google app version 17.12.51, reports that Google is testing wallpaper-based theming for Gemini so parts of the interface can borrow colors from your phone’s system theme. Right now, that change appears only in the Gemini overlay and not across the full app. (androidpolice.com) That would be a noticeable break from Gemini’s current look. Today, Gemini is defined by its own blue-purple four-color glow, which makes it feel like a separate product inside Android. A Material-themed version would make Gemini feel less like a special destination and more like a built-in layer of the phone. (androidpolice.com) Google is also revising the way Gemini appears on top of Android apps. According to 9to5Google, a redesign now rolling out in Google app beta version 17.3 makes the Gemini overlay narrower, enlarges the “Ask Gemini” field, switches the microphone to an outline-style icon, and combines attachments with the tools menu behind a plus button. Gemini Live is also moving to a floating interface instead of a wider full-screen panel. (9to5google.com) Put those pieces together and the pattern is pretty clear. Projects helps with organization. Import tools reduce the pain of switching. The new overlay and theme changes make Gemini feel more embedded in Android instead of bolted on. None of those changes makes the model smarter, but all of them make the product easier to live inside every day. (androidauthority.com) That import piece is especially revealing. Google now officially lets users bring chat history and saved “memories” from other artificial intelligence apps into Gemini. On Google’s own import page, the company says users can upload chat exports as.zip files up to 5 gigabytes, and imported chats then appear in Gemini’s left-hand menu with a special icon. (gemini.google) 9to5Google reported on March 26, 2026, that Google explicitly named ChatGPT and Claude in that transfer flow and allows up to five.zip uploads per day. The same report also said the feature was not available in the European Economic Area, Switzerland, or the United Kingdom at that time. (([9to5google.com)That is the sort of feature companies add when they are no longer just chasing curiosity clicks. A chatbot can win a one-off test with a clever answer. It wins real usage only when people trust it with months of work, can find old threads, and do not feel trapped if they move from one service to another. Projects and imports are both aimed at that exact problem. (([androidauthority.com)The expansion is not limited to phones and laptops. Google is also widening access to Gemini for Home, the version of Gemini that powers voice interactions on Google Home and Nest devices. Google’s Nest help pages now list early access for the Gemini for Home voice assistant in Canada, Mexico, and the United States, across English, French, and Spanish variants including English (United States), French (Canada), and Spanish (United States). (([support.google.com)Google’s support pages also show a broader map for related Google Home features. The “Ask Home” feature inside the Google Home app is listed as available in countries including Australia, Canada, France, Germany, Japan, Spain, the United Kingdom, and the United States, while the Gemini for Home voice assistant itself remains in an earlier-access phase in fewer markets. (([support.google.com)There is also a quieter but important account change for people who mix work and home. Google Home support pages now say Google Workspace users can participate in more parts of the Home setup flow, and recent coverage from Droid-Life and 9to5Google points to expanded Workspace account support, including Nest migration and device sharing scenarios that used to be more restricted. That means a person using a work-managed Google account is less likely to hit a dead end when trying to connect home devices or services. (([droid-life.com)Taken together, this is less about one flashy Gemini launch than about tightening the screws on the whole product. Google is improving how Gemini stores work, how it looks on Android, how it fits into smart-home routines, and how easily people can bring their old chatbot history with them. The message is that Gemini is no longer being shaped only as a demo of Google’s models, but as a place Google wants people to stay. (androidauthority.com)