Gemini adds cross‑platform memories
Google rolled out a major Gemini upgrade that lets users import chat histories and 'AI memories' from other platforms, and added Chrome sidebar tools—Gmail also got a simple opt‑out flow for Gemini features. The update pushes personalized, persistent memory and cross‑platform portability into mainstream UX. ( )
Google published the product blog update on March 26, 2026 and positioned the import tools as part of a Gemini app refresh led on the blog by Group Product Manager Maryam Sanglaji. (blog.google) The import flow offers two concrete ingestion paths — a suggested prompt that extracts memories for paste-in transfer, and a ZIP upload option that accepts exported chat histories — and Google quietly relabeled “Past chats” inside the app to “Memory.” (blog.google) Chrome’s new Gemini side panel runs on Gemini 3 and introduces “auto‑browse,” an agentic multi‑step browsing feature that Google says is available for Mac, Windows and Chromebook Plus devices. (blog.google) Hands‑on reviews documented specific UX gains from the sidebar — multi‑tab context awareness that reads the active tab, inline compose suggestions within web pages, and a set of curated “five tricks” reviewers highlighted for day‑to‑day workflow speedups. (androidauthority.com) Gmail’s Gemini integration was announced earlier in January 2026 with the change set to be on by default starting January 8, 2026, and Google exposed the opt‑out through Gmail’s Smart features/Workspace smart features toggles (opting out also disables legacy features like Smart Compose in some flows). (cnbc.com) The import tools track a broader industry shift toward memory portability: Anthropic launched a similar Claude memory‑import flow for users on March 2, 2026, using the same copy‑prompt → paste → import pattern to lower switching costs between assistants. (claude.com)
