Google launches its most significant update to Gmail in years

Google Inc. is launching a major revamp of its Gmail service today as part of a larger update to its G Suite productivity suite for enterprises.

The update, which looks to be one of the most significant that Gmail has seen in years, includes a new user interface, more features powered by its artificial intelligence technology, tighter integration with other G Suite apps, and more advanced security measures. The idea behind the updates, which consumer Gmail users can opt into as well, is to help users work “safer, smarter and more efficiently,” David Thacker, vice president of product management at G Suite, said in a blog post introducing the changes.

The most obvious change users will notice once the update goes live is the redesigned user interface, which Google says has been done to help people take action even faster. For example, it’s no longer necessary to click on a message to see or open the attachments it contains. Users can also take further actions, such as snoozing a particular message or responding to a meeting invitation, direct from their inbox.

The redesign also integrates apps such as Google Calendar, so that invites can be quickly referenced and edited. Ideas can be captured in Keep, and to-do lists can be managed via the Tasks app, both of which are accessible via a new sidebar on the right of the screen. This new side panel isn’t just for Gmail either. Thacker said it will also be rolled into other G Suite apps such as Sheets, Docs and Slides at a later date.

The Tasks app itself has also been reworked. As the name suggests, it’s used to create lists of tasks that still need to be done, and those that have due dates will also be added to the Calendar. To save time, users can now simply “drag and drop” an email directly into Tasks in the side panel and Google will create a new one automatically.

AI infusion

Additional new productivity features in Gmail are powered by AI, including Smart Reply, Nudging and high-priority notifications.

Smart Reply should already be familiar with mobile Gmail users: It’s the feature that allows you to quickly click on a short reply such as “Okay, thanks for letting me know” and send it instantly, rather than typing a reply yourself. This feature is now enabled on the Gmail web client to help those users save time too.

When Nudging is enabled, Gmail will proactively remind users about messages they still need to respond to, so they don’t forget. Finally, the high-priority notifications setting uses AI to work out which messages are the most important, and will only notify users of these, keeping interruptions to a minimum.

Alan Lepofsky, vice president and principal analyst at Constellation Research Inc., told SiliconANGLE that new features such as the side panel, while not especially innovative, will nonetheless be welcomed by most users as it provides additional context without having to switch between applications.

“Features like nudge and the new notifications could help people reduce the all-too-common feeling of inbox overload, as it will help them organize and follow up on items that require action,” Lepofsky said.

Google has also added offline capabilities to Gmail at last, so users can search, write, respond, delete or archive messages and these changes will be reflected as soon as they connect to the web again.

Smarter security

Google has added almost as many new security features, including new “phishing” protections to help address what it calls “business email compromise threats,” in which someone spoofs an email address and tries to impersonate a colleague in order to steal company information. Gmail reckons it can now block 99.9 percent of these attacks either by warning users or sending them straight to spam.

Meanwhile, the new Confidential Mode helps users to protect sensitive messages by creating expiration dates and by revoking sent messages. Sensitive data in sent messages can also be protected by two-factor authentication, so the recipients would need to identify themselves via an SMS message in order to access the contents.

The last new security measure is Built-in Information Rights Management, which is designed to reduce the risk of email contents being shared with unauthorized persons. These controls give users the ability to remove the option to forward, copy, download or print messages.

“It’s also good to see Google focusing on security, as awareness and understanding of privacy issues are increasing,” Lepofsky said.

Google said it’s planning to enable the new Gmail experience for business users today via its G Suite Early Adopter Program. Those wanting to try it out can find out how to do so here. Some features, including Nudging and high-priority notifications, will be added in “coming weeks.”