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Google Gemini now lets you generate and edit files inside chats

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Google Gemini now lets you generate and edit files inside chats

Google has added file editing to the Gemini app. Users can generate, preview and edit PDFs, Google Docs, Google Sheets, slide decks, Markdown files, TXT files and code directly within Gemini, so editing a file Gemini produced no longer means leaving the app.

Google added support for generating and downloading files in Gemini earlier this year. What is new is that those files can now be tweaked in place. According to Google, users can expand a document to edit it in full-screen mode, and can highlight text in a file to ask Gemini questions about it or to prompt it to change the file. The example Google gives is highlighting a table and asking Gemini to turn it into a graph.

The new capabilities are available starting the day of the report for all Gemini users. PDF previews and editing work on both web and mobile. All other file formats are web-only for now.

The Verge notes that Gemini could already edit files through its integrations in Google's Workspace apps, such as the Gemini bar in Google Docs. It also points out that Anthropic launched a feature earlier this year that lets users generate and edit documents and presentations in Claude chats.

Key facts

  • Gemini chats can now generate, preview and edit PDFs, Google Docs, Google Sheets, slide decks, Markdown files, TXT files and code.
  • Users can expand a document to full-screen mode and highlight text to ask Gemini questions or request changes, for example turning a highlighted table into a graph.
  • The feature is available from the day of the report to all Gemini users; PDF works on web and mobile, every other format is web-only for now.
  • File generation and download arrived in Gemini earlier this year; Gemini could already edit files inside Workspace apps such as Google Docs.
  • Anthropic launched a comparable feature for documents and presentations in Claude chats earlier this year.

Why it matters

Google added support for generating and downloading files in Gemini earlier this year; now those files can be tweaked without leaving the app. Editing in the chat itself puts Gemini alongside Claude, where Anthropic launched document and presentation generation and editing earlier this year. Gemini already edited files through its Workspace integrations, such as the Gemini bar in Google Docs; the new part is doing it inside the Gemini app.

Who it affects

All Gemini users, according to the report. People who generate documents, spreadsheets, slide decks, Markdown, text files or code in Gemini chats and then need to adjust the result are the obvious beneficiaries.

How to use it

Generate a file in a Gemini chat, then preview it there. Expand the document to edit it in full-screen mode, or highlight text in the file and ask Gemini a question or tell it what to change, for instance highlighting a table and asking for a graph. PDF preview and editing work on web and mobile; the other formats are available only in the web version for now. The source says the feature is for all Gemini users and mentions no plan tiers or pricing.

How solid is it

The report is a short news item from The Verge. The description of how editing works (full-screen mode, highlighting text to prompt changes, the table-to-graph example) is attributed to Google. The availability and format details are stated by The Verge as fact.

Risks and caveats

Support is uneven: only PDFs can be previewed and edited on mobile, and the other formats are web-only for now. The report does not say when mobile support for the other formats will arrive. It also does not say which model powers the editing, and it does not compare the quality of the feature with Claude's.

“Editing files you generate with Gemini no longer requires leaving the app.”

— The Verge