From reusable helpers to skills
Google launched Gems in 2024. Its built-in examples included study help, brainstorming, career advice, coding and editing. Users could also make their own, such as a running coach, nutrition adviser or vacation planner.
Gems could be shared with other people. Google hoped that sharing would help Gemini gain users.
A different kind of interface
Google says in the Gemini app that it will move Gems to the new format automatically. The assistants will continue working until November 17, 2026.
But skills appear less convenient for everyday users than simply typing a request into a chatbot such as Meta’s Muse. To select one inside a conversation, users have to type a forward slash: /. That is an interaction pattern more commonly associated with engineers.
The outlet 9to5Google reported the Gems shutdown over the weekend.
The missing piece is discovery
I think the change exposes a tension in Google’s original bet: shareable assistants could bring people to Gemini, but only if they were easy to find and use. A slash command may suit people who already know what tool they want; it adds friction for everyone else.
Google has described the migration and a final date for Gems, but the announcement leaves a more practical question open: how will ordinary users discover and choose skills? If the new format makes saved assistance harder to reach, moving the content automatically will not preserve the reason people used Gems in the first place.
Daily AI news
Every day we pick what actually matters in AI and explain it plainly — no hype, no filler. Subscribe if you want to follow where the industry is going.
Only what matters — every day
Follow on X