Google will phase out Gem starting on November 17, 2026. (Picture/Photo taken from the Internet)
Google Gemini's custom AI assistant Gem is about to go into history, and will be replaced by the new "Skills" function. Starting from November 17, 2026, Gem will be converted into a skill and become read-only. Although it can be accessed, it cannot be used, edited, and create new Gem. It will be officially removed on December 17. However, some files may not be completely retained. Users are reminded to back up important data as soon as possible.
What is the difference between the old and new functions? Gem exits and skills take over
Gem is Gemini's "customized AI assistant". Users can set up their own assistant according to their needs, such as writing articles, planning travel or organizing information. Skills provide a more flexible way of use. For example, you can use skills directly in the current conversation without switching tabs. In addition, you can combine multiple skills to create a customized workflow that better meets your needs.
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When will Gems be retired? View each account time at once
According to Google’s official announcement, Gem will cease services in stages according to account types, with general individual users being affected from November 17th at the earliest.
● November 17, 2026: For personal Google accounts over 18 years old, Gem will be automatically converted into skills. The original Gem will enter read-only status and you can still view the content, but you will not be able to continue to use, edit or create new Gem.
● December 17, 2026: Gem will be officially removed from the Gemini application, and users will no longer be able to access the original Gem and related files.
● March 2027: Workspace Business, Enterprise and Nonprofit accounts will be converted.
● June 2027: Workspace Education Edition accounts transition. As for personal Google accounts under the age of 18, Gem will also be converted into skills in the future, but the exact timetable has not yet been announced. In addition, Google's experimental features Opal and Gems by Google Labs will also be deactivated simultaneously in November.
For users who have used Gem, the most important thing to note is that all files originally stored in Gem may not be transferred to skills. Although Google will automatically convert existing gems and supported files into skills, due to capacity and format limitations, some files may not be successfully transferred. Users are reminded to complete the backup before December 17 to avoid being unable to retrieve them in the future.
Be careful of important files disappearing. Category 5 formats cannot be automatically transferred.
First of all, the file size limit of Skills is 100MB. If the total size of the original Gem files exceeds the limit, the system will remove the files starting with the largest size until the upper limit is reached. In addition, some file formats do not support automatic transfer, including GitHub files, audio and video files, old Microsoft Office files (.doc, .xls, .ppt), and archived and compressed files (.zip, .tar, .7z, .rar, .gz, .tgz).
Google recommends users to open the original Gem and converted skills at the same time, and compare the files one by one to see if they are completely transferred. If you find any omissions, you should download a backup from the old Gem before December 17 to avoid losing important data after the Gem is officially removed.
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