After deploying multiple Gemini AI features within Google Workspace, Google executives have stated that this marks a significant step towards the widespread adoption of AI agents among numerous organizations utilizing their cloud productivity platform, which includes popular enterprise applications such as Google Drive, Gmail, Google Calendar, Google Meet, Google Sheets, and Google Slides.
According to Thrive, an online marketing agency, Google Workspace boasts at least 8 million paid customers, capturing 84.95% of the cloud workplace applications market share.
Aparna Pappu, Vice President and General Manager of Google Workspace, stated that Google is employing a "crawl, walk, run" strategy in extending AI agents to a broader user base.
"You can view the introduction of agents as a series of building blocks, where users are training their assistants to learn how to operate," Pappu stated during a Q&A session with journalists and analysts at the Gemini at Work event in New York on Thursday. "We are striving towards training assistants that can function as agents."
Earlier this week, Google announced that its standalone Gemini chat application, powered by the Gemini AI model, has been integrated into the paid accounts of Workspace's Business, Enterprise, and Frontline editions.
Within Workspace, Gemini enables users to request summaries of emails in Gmail, locate information stored across multiple documents in Google Drive, or craft natural language prompts in Sheets to generate customized charts.
Unlike other platforms deploying AI agents tailored to specific workflows such as sales and marketing, Google Workspace caters to a broad and diverse audience.
Pappu highlighted that Google has been contemplating the integration of agents within Workspace. She referenced AI teammate Chip, which Google showcased at the I/O Developers Conference in May.
"At Google I/O, we introduced our AI teammate, an AI colleague designed to perform specific tasks. Our ultimate goal is to scale this across enterprises, and we believe Workspace is instrumental in achieving this," Pappu stated.
Google also plans to gradually roll out Gemini-powered workflow automation within Workspace starting in October.
Workflow automation will enable users to set up tasks that can automatically read emails or documents, categorize them, and execute appropriate actions.
For instance, if a user receives an email containing an invoice, Gemini will recognize its relevance to finance and budgeting, and then route the invoice to the appropriate team for processing payments.
This type of workflow orchestration is also a building block for AI agents.
AI Agents for a Broader User Base
AI agents have become touchpoints for many companies managing employee productivity. Within just the past month, several companies have released AI agents or integrations with AI agents. Slack has added AI agent integrations from Salesforce, Asana, Cohere, Workday, Adobe Express, and Writer. ServiceNow has also launched its own AI agents for customers.
Meta has also announced plans to add functionality for users to build agents on WhatsApp or Messenger to answer questions.
It is unsurprising that large organizations like Google offer AI agent access to their extensive customer base.
Many businesses, regardless of size, utilize Google's Workspace suite, which includes email, documents, and spreadsheets, along with other Google Cloud products connected to customer management systems.
Google Bets on AI-Driven Productivity
Google's Gemini at Work event aims to showcase how the company's flagship AI model saves time for customers.
"We have begun to hear from customers that they are observing increases in employee retention and even happiness due to their use of Gemini," Pappu said. "It's not just about saving time; it also eliminates those pesky minor tasks."
Google states that customers using Gemini, whether within Workspace or other platforms, can enhance productivity and reduce time spent on tedious tasks like code translation.
Pappu mentioned that Gemini is helping more businesses become competitive, even those that are still small, by providing expertise without the need to hire consultants.
