Google folds NotebookLM into Gemini with code and Search access

Google is renaming NotebookLM to Gemini Notebook and expanding what the product can do with sources, code, and data analysis. The move suggests Google no longer wants its research and note-taking tool to sit in a separate corner while the broader market for AI assistants shifts toward file-based projects and document workflows.

NotebookLM launched in 2023 as a Google Labs project. It now has more than 30 million users and over 600,000 organizations, making it a mature product rather than a side experiment. Its role remains distinct: organizing knowledge from documents, links, and notes without mixing that work into the standard Gemini chat experience.

Google says the updated service will include:

• a new name: Gemini Notebook
• a secure cloud computer for each notebook
• native code execution
• more advanced data analysis
• outputs grounded in the user’s own sources

Despite the Gemini branding, the service will remain a separate product rather than being folded directly into the regular chat interface.

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According to Google, the update is already rolling out to Google AI Ultra subscribers and Workspace customers. Over the next few weeks, Pro users will get access in the web version. Later, notebooks will also be accessible from AI Mode in Google Search and from the Gemini app.

The shift also helps Google justify its pricier AI subscriptions with more practical workflows around documents, research, and code. As the source notes, OpenAI and Anthropic have already been pushing similar tools toward project- and file-centric use, so the rebrand matters less on its own than the broader feature expansion that comes with it.