Gemini now turns your documents into podcasts, collaborates with you too

Google's Gemini team seems to be on a roll lately. After launching Gemini with personalization a few days ago, today Gemini is getting two new features: Canvas and Audio Overview. These are quite exciting despite their dull names.

Let's start with the latter. Audio Overview basically transforms any document you upload to Gemini into a podcast - or rather, it presents the information in the document in an audio podcast form, with two AI hosts. This was first seen in Google's NotebookLM, and it's now making its way to Gemini. What's more, it's available for everyone using Gemini, you don't have to be a subscriber to the paid plans.

The only caveat is that this is available in English only for now, but more languages are promised to arrive "soon". To create an Audio Overview (podcast), just upload documents or slides "on a variety of topics" and then click the suggestion chip that pops up above the prompt bar. It will take a few minutes for each podcast to be generated.

Audio Overview is available on the web and in the Gemini mobile app, and the podcasts can easily be shared and downloaded. Google suggests using it with "class notes, research papers, lengthy email threads or reports generated by Deep Research".

Gemini is also getting Canvas, "a new interactive space within Gemini" designed to "make creating, refining and sharing your work easy". You can "effortlessly generate high-quality first drafts", then perfect your work with Gemini's feedback. Gemini can easily adjust tone, length, or formatting with quick editing tools.

The best way to think about it is that it's designed for seamless collaboration with Gemini. And if once you're done you want to collaborate with other humans as well, you can export the Canvas to Google Docs with one click. Canvas also works with coding, streamlining "the process of transforming your coding ideas into working prototypes for web apps, Python scripts, games, simulations, and other interactive apps".

Canvas lets developers "quickly create initial working versions of their projects and provides a space for students to quickly learn coding concepts". Throughout the process, Gemini collaborates with you to make iterative edits to your code too. Canvas is rolling out globally now to all Gemini and Gemini Advanced users in all languages. You can try it by selecting Canvas in the prompt bar.

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