Google recently launched a new feature called "Canvas" for its AI-powered chatbot, Gemini, aimed at enhancing user creation and collaboration. Similar to tools with the same name in OpenAI's ChatGPT Canvas and Anthropic's Artifacts, this feature provides Gemini users with an interactive space to create, refine, and share writing and programming projects.
Gemini's product director, Dave Citron, stated in a blog post: "Canvas is designed to work seamlessly with Gemini. These new features will make Gemini an even more efficient collaborative partner, helping users bring their ideas to life." This new tool allows users to easily draft, edit, and refine long-form content within Gemini's web and mobile applications.
Canvas lets users update specific parts of a draft using dedicated tools. Simply highlighting a paragraph allows users to ask Gemini to simplify it, make it more professional, or adjust its tone to be more informal. For example, if users want to add a professional touch to their content, they can easily export it to Google Docs for collaboration.
Beyond text processing, Gemini's Canvas includes programming tools. Users can generate and preview web application prototypes using HTML, React code, and more. The preview refreshes in real-time as users request changes. For instance, a user could ask Gemini to generate an HTML email subscription form and preview how it would look on a webpage.
Additionally, Google introduced an audio summarization feature for NotebookLM in this update. This feature generates audio summaries of documents, web pages, and other sources, presented in podcast format. Users can simply upload a document via the prompt bar to quickly generate an audio summary, which can then be downloaded or shared. Canvas and the audio summarization feature became available globally to Gemini users for free starting Tuesday, although the code preview feature in Canvas is currently only available on the web version, and the audio summarization is limited to English.
Google's launch of Canvas and the audio summarization feature not only enhances Gemini's collaborative capabilities but also provides users with more convenient creative tools.
