December 2024 saw the arrival of “Translate for me” in Google Chat – a Gemini feature that helps break down communication barriers in mixed-language teams – as well as the ability to present into a meeting via HDMI cable on Poly Studio X devices for Google Meet, new Google Docs templates and much more.
Read about these updates and everything else that happened in December below; or skip to the section that’s most relevant to you.
💡 In case you missed it, we rounded up some of 2024’s most significant Google Meet and Google Workspace updates, including annotations in Meet, eSignature in Drive and Docs, new ways to communicate in Chat and much more. Catch up here:
Google Meet
In mid-December, Google announced that when using a Poly Studio X device for Google Meet, you can now present content into the meeting with an HDMI cable. This provides more flexibility for sharing content in a call, in addition to wireless screensharing through companion mode. The ability to present via HDMI cable is available on all Poly Studio X devices that support Google Meet appliance mode: Poly Studio X30, Studio X50†, Studio X52 and Studio X70.
†Poly Studio X50 is no longer available for purchase and has been succeeded by the Poly Studio X52. Existing devices are able to receive the update.
Google Workspace
Google Chat
In 💬 Google Chat, you can now see out of office notifications for people in group messages and 🚀 spaces. The out of office banner, which is already available in direct messages, keeps you and your colleagues informed about each other’s scheduled absences and returns. It helps improve communication and set expectations about response times.
Updates were also made to mentions in Google Chat in December. Specifically, when mentioning people who aren’t in the current conversation, there will be a new option allowing you to choose whether to add them or not. This can let you provide helpful context without necessarily pulling someone into the discussion. Mentions will also be displayed as 🤓🍟 smart chips to make them easier to identify across Chat.
✨ Gemini ✨ in Google Chat will soon be able to automatically translate messages* from over 120 languages into your preferred language (as set on your Google profile). “Translate for me” helps break down communication barriers between mixed-language teams and reduces the need to visit an external site to understand the message. Translated messages are only visible to you and do not affect what others in the conversation can see.
The Google Chat integration with GitHub was also updated. It now offers improved notification cards that display key details about GitHub events, such as issues, pull requests and comments, directly in the Chat message stream, along with other enhancements.
Google Drive
Policy visualisation, a feature that clearly explains why you are prevented from performing certain actions in 🔐 protected Google Docs, Sheets, Slides and Drive files, began rolling out more widely in December following its open beta launch in July. It now also includes 📽 Google Vids – Google’s new, collaborative, AI-powered video-creation tool.
During the same week, the Google Workspace eSignature feature expanded to include PDFs stored in Google Drive. This means you’ll be able to request signatures on PDFs uploaded to Google Drive – in addition to Google Docs files – with custom fields for details such as 📞 phone number and 💼 job title. With eSignature built into Google Workspace, you can complete signature-related tasks without needing to leave Drive and Docs.
Later in December, Google added 📂 folder support to the Gemini side panel* in Google Drive. This means you will be able to ask Gemini about a specific folder to better understand its content and find what you need. For instance, you can ask Gemini to find files within a folder, summarise a folder’s content, identify a folder’s key themes and much more – all from the side panel.
When you upload a 📽 video to Google Drive from the web, you will soon be able to watch the video immediately rather than waiting for it to finish processing. Instant video playback makes it easier to review your content without delays. The video will still continue processing in the background.
For mobile, the Google Drive Android app now automatically enhances the quality of your scanned documents, performing actions such as white balance correction, shadow removal and auto-sharpening to improve the appearance of scanned content. This follows other recent file-scanning updates in the app, including the ability to apply ⚫⚪ black and white filters to enhance the clarity of text and other key details in scanned documents.
Google Docs
From December, PDFs exported from 📝 Google Docs will be more accessible with improved accessibility 🏷 tags for headings, paragraphs, links, images and lists. These hidden labels will help users of assistive technologies, such as screen readers, to better understand the structure and content of a file.
A collection of 40 new, visually-appealing ♾ pageless templates was also added to Google Docs in December. Tailored to a wide range of use cases, including blog posts, press releases and sales pitches, these templates are pre-built with features such as 📑 document tabs, 🍟 placeholder chips and 🧩 building blocks and can help you get started with projects quicker.
“Help me create” started rolling out in Google Docs. This Gemini feature enables you to go from a blank page to a fully-formatted document, complete with images, text, tables and more, using a single prompt*. You can even pull in content from your existing Google Drive files to make your document more contextually-rich.
To make it easier to find and use relevant Google Workspace Marketplace apps, Google Docs will now prompt you to install an add-on when you paste a supported link into your document. Once you have installed the Workspace Marketplace app, you can quickly replace the link with a smart chip that shows key app information when you hover over it.
Google Forms
The 2023 beta feature that lets you limit Google Forms access to specific users, groups or target audiences started rolling out more widely in December. This feature provides more granular control over who can respond to your form, which can be particularly useful when a form is only intended for a certain audience. Previously, you could only choose between restricting the form to your domain or making it completely public.
Google Admin panel
The Google Admin panel saw two updates relating to usage reports in December. The first update introduces new Google Chat usage reports which allow admins to gain a deeper understanding of how their users are engaging with Chat. The reports include information about the number of messages sent, messages sent to external users, spaces created and more.
The second update expands on the existing Gemini usage reports in the Google Admin panel to provide more detailed insights. Admins can now see how often Gemini content summarisation and generation features were used in Gmail, Docs, Sheets and Slides, as well as the number of messages exchanged when users are chatting with Gemini in the Gemini app and the Gemini side panel across Google Workspace.
In addition to these updates, admins can now assign 📆 Google Calendar resources, such as a meeting room, to specific organisational units (OUs). The Google Calendar resource will then adhere to the data retention and other policies set for that OU.
The Google Admin panel also lets admins assign the ✍ Groups Editor and 📖 Groups Reader roles to specific group types within their organisation. Previously available in open beta, this feature is now generally available and gives admins more fine-tuned control over who can perform 👥 Google Group-related tasks.
The August open beta feature that lets admins define which Google services, such as Gmail or Google Drive, that third-party apps can access by selecting specific API scopes became generally available in December.
Admins also gained access to the AppSheet admin console, a tool previously available in public preview only to those with an AppSheet Enterprise Plus licence. This console allows admins to monitor users, apps and licences within the organisation. Since its wider availability, the AppSheet admin console has also introduced new features, including the ability to view app usage history for all accounts within the organisation.
Three new beta features were announced for the Google Admin panel in December. The first beta feature enables admins to convert client-side encrypted 📊 Google Sheets into Microsoft Excel files after a Vault or Takeout data export.
The second feature, which is available in open beta, allows admins to 🔒 lock specific 👥 Google Groups to prevent changes to the group’s name, description, email address, memberships and other sensitive settings. When a Google Group is locked, only select admins have permission to make modifications.
The third feature, also available in open beta, introduces a new migration tool that lets admins migrate conversations from Microsoft Teams channels to Google Chat 🚀 spaces directly from the Google Admin panel. This tool simplifies the transition for organisations moving from Microsoft Teams to Google Chat for their communication. Admins are able to start, manage and keep track of the migration process without relying on third-party software. The tool can also perform delta migrations to sync messages sent after the initial migration.
Google Groups
Updated ⌨ keyboard shortcuts are coming to 👥 Google Groups to improve accessibility. Both the current and new shortcuts will be supported until early 2025, after which only the new ones will work.
Gemini
Five new premade 💎 Gems* became available in the Gemini app, helping you get more done and streamline repetitive tasks across sales, marketing, HR and customer service. The new premade Gems include a 🧑🏫 sales pitch ideator, 💼 hiring consultant, ✍ copywriter and more. They join the existing options such as a 🧑💻 coding partner and 🎓 learning coach.
💡 Premade Gems act as a template to help you with specific tasks in the Gemini app. You can make them your own by setting specific goals and desired behaviour from Gemini which the chosen Gem will recall each time you interact with it. You can also create your own Gem from scratch.
Google also announced the attainment of HIPAA and other ISO certifications for the Gemini app on web and mobile. This means it has been certified to meet several industry security and privacy standards. The Gemini app also became SOC 1 compliant later in December, adding to its existing SOC 2 and SOC 3 certifications. Earlier in the year, Gemini for Google Workspace also achieved SOC 1, SOC 2 and SOC 3 compliance.
Gemini 2.0 was introduced in December. Gemini 2.0 is Google’s latest AI model designed to be more capable than previous versions with advanced features, such as multimodal reasoning and tool use, that can power a new generation of AI agents to assist you in a variety of tasks.
NotebookLM
In December, Google announced that 📓 NotebookLM Plus* is now available for teams with select Gemini for Google Workspace add-ons. With NotebookLM Plus, you get five times more Audio Overviews, queries, notebooks and sources per notebook. You also get access to a new set of features, including the option to customise the style and length of your notebook and create shared notebooks within a team.
Catch up on 2024's biggest updates
Whether you missed any of 2024’s key updates, or just need a reminder of what launched, we’ve rounded up the top Google Meet and Google Workspace features from the year in two separate blog posts. You can read them below:
*These features require select Gemini for Google Workspace add-ons. Compare the Gemini add-ons here.