Google has begun to roll out a feature that places Google Gemini directly into the Google Chrome address bar and is expanding the overall coverage of its Gemini app to over 100 countries worldwide.
Google was reportedly testing the feature to easily access Google Gemini in mid-April, with the feature being spotted in the Chrome Canary beta. However, Google has now begun to roll out the feature to the general public, as announced on X. This new feature allows users to summon Google’s chatbot by typing @ into the address bar, selecting Chat with Gemini, then entering a prompt.
Quickly start your chat with Gemini using the new shortcut in the Chrome desktop address bar👇Step 1: Type “@” in the desktop address bar and select Chat with Gemini Step 2: Write your promptStep 3: Get your response on https://t.co/MukYC54K9eSeriously. It’s that easy ✨ pic.twitter.com/F7LdcFCc2aApril 30, 2024
Google is also expanding the availability of its Gemini App, which was initially only available in the US, but has quickly expanded to Europe and Asia. This allows users to directly download the app from the Google Play Store, meaning that they will no longer have to sideload the Gemini app onto their device, although users with the Workspace add-on enabled or an Android Work Profile still won't be able to.
Both Google Gemini and the Gemini app are set for further improvements down the road, too. Google recently announced that the Gemini app on Android will soon be able to summarize PDFs and other files for users, and will reportedly change how it answers users' questions by producing answers as they’re generated (like ChatGPT), rather than making users wait for a complete answer. Google also recently announced at Google Next that Google Gemini Pro 1.5 will soon be able to analyze the contents of an audio or video file without a transcript for the first time.
Including Gemini into Chrome's Omnibox is an interesting feature that shows Google aims to further link its AI chatbot in with one of its biggest existing products. If you're a Chrome user's who's not tried out Gemini before, check our list for 7 great Google Gemini AI prompts to try to see what it can do.
