What’s happened? The Alphabet-owned tech giant Google has launched a new feature for its Chrome browser, which helps summarize webpages within seconds, directly from the browser interface, using the Gemini AI assistant.
- The new Chrome feature (in version 141.0.7390.70), called Summarize Page, is available as a shortcut above the Gemini query box (via 9To5Google).
- I used the feature on an affordable OnePlus mid-ranger by invoking the Gemini AI assistant and then selecting the “Summarize Page” shortcut.
- Then, the feature summarizes the entire Chrome webpage in a floating window using the Gemini 2.5 Flash model, even when you have access to the Gemini 2.5 Pro model in the app.
Why is this important? For all those times you wished not to read an entire article to get the gist of the news, the Summarize Page feature can help you achieve that.
- You don’t have to copy and paste the news article URLs in the Gemini app to get a summary, as the feature works on all websites.
- The feature isn’t entirely new, as a similar AI Summaries feature already exists on iOS (although it was previously pulled due to generating inaccurate responses).
- Between summarization via Gemini and Apple Intelligence, and I found out that the former gives detailed and comprehensive summaries (over 100 words), while the latter tries to keep responses shorter (around 50 words).
Why should I care? Whether you’re going through a product’s details, reading a research paper, or reviewing daily news, the ability to generate concise and relevant summaries instantly saves time and effort.
- Once Gemini has generated the summary, you can dive into deeper conversations with the AI assistant by asking related questions using the query box at the bottom or via voice.
- The summarization feature is available on Android, iOS, and the desktop version of the Chrome browser.
OK, what’s next? Going forward, Google could expand Gemini’s summarization feature to include not just text-based articles, but also images and videos, along with options for personalized summaries. We might see conversational overlays with Chrome tabs, which could potentially change the way we use the browser. This should also encourage Apple to refine its AI Summaries feature.
