# What is Gemini? > Gemini is Google's AI assistant and model family, available as an app and inside Google apps on many accounts. What it does and how to get good answers. Source: https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/glossary/gemini · Updated 2026-10-01 · Free from Stepthrough (https://learn.ynteractive.com) [AI assistants](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/glossary#topic-ai-assistants) · [AI glossary](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/glossary) Updated October 1, 2026 · By [Robert Breen](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/about) Gemini is Google's AI assistant and the name of the AI models behind it. You can chat with it in the Gemini app, and on many Google accounts it also appears inside Gmail, Docs, Sheets and Meet to draft, summarize and answer questions about your files. ## Why it matters for a small business If your business runs on Google Workspace, Gemini may already be one click away inside the tools you use all day. That changes the routine: instead of copying a document into a separate chat, you can ask about it where it sits. Which features you see depends on your account and your admin's settings, so check before planning around them. The prompting basics don't change. Gemini needs the same context, facts and format instructions as any assistant, and it can still get things wrong. Being built into Docs doesn't make its summary of a meeting more reliable than one you've checked yourself. ## In a real lesson: Summarize a Meeting Transcript with ChatGPT Stepthrough has no Gemini lesson. The [meeting summary lesson](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/chatgpt-summarize-meeting-transcript) starts in Google's world, though: the transcript is a Google Doc that Google Meet saved after a Monday team meeting at Harbor Street Bakery, a made-up bakery. You copy it with **Edit**, **Select all** and **Copy**, then paste it into ChatGPT under a request. That request is what you'd bring to Gemini too: a three-sentence summary, the decisions, an action items table with task, owner and due date, and the open questions, using only what's in the transcript and writing "Not stated" when an owner or date wasn't said. The result shows two due dates as **Not stated**, the library catering quote and the oven repair call, which you fill in before asking for the follow-up email. Whether the summary comes from Gemini inside Docs or from a separate chat, the request and the check are what make it trustworthy. [Try this lesson free](https://learn.ynteractive.com/modules/chatgpt-meeting-summary) or [read the step-by-step guide](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/chatgpt-summarize-meeting-transcript). ## Common confusions ### Gemini vs AI answers in Google Search Gemini is the assistant you chat with. The AI summaries at the top of some Google results are a search feature, part of [AI search](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/glossary/ai-search), not your private assistant. ### Gemini vs Bard Bard was the earlier name of Google's chat assistant. Google renamed it Gemini. ### Gemini vs Gems Gemini is the assistant. [Gems](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/glossary/gemini-gems) are custom versions of it you set up for one specific job. ## Tips - Ask your Workspace admin which Gemini features are on for your account and how data is handled. - Keep a saved request for recurring jobs like meeting recaps, and paste it each time. - Check names, owners and dates in any summary before you send it. ## Related terms [Gems (Gemini)](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/glossary/gemini-gems) · [NotebookLM](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/glossary/notebooklm) · [ChatGPT](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/glossary/chatgpt) · [Claude](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/glossary/claude) · [AI summarization](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/glossary/ai-summarization) · [Multimodal AI](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/glossary/multimodal-ai) ## Where to learn more [Part 3 · ChatGPT for Everyday Work](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/course/part-3-chatgpt-for-everyday-work) · [Part 2 · Better Prompts](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/course/part-2-better-prompts) ## Frequently asked questions **Is Gemini free?** Google offers a free version of the Gemini app as well as paid options, and the features inside Workspace depend on your account. Check Google's current offers. **Can I use prompts from the ChatGPT lessons in Gemini?** Yes. Prompts are plain text, and the structure taught in the lessons (role, context, task and format, plus a facts list) works the same way. [All AI glossary terms, A to Z](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/glossary) · [Free prompt templates](https://learn.ynteractive.com/content/prompts)