With all-in-one AI agents like Meta’s Muse and Instinct gaining traction, Google has revealed it will be discontinuing the Gemini feature recognized as “Gems,” which allowed users to develop personalized AI assistants for particular tasks. Nonetheless, the efforts users put into creating Gems will not be lost. Gems will automatically transition into “skills” that can be applied across various AI functions.

Information regarding this modification is being disseminated within the Gemini app, where a notification alerts users that Gems will transform into skills beginning on November 17, 2026. The company indicated that it will facilitate the transfer of Gems to the new structure, meaning users won’t need to take any action for the transition. The Gems will still be functional until that date.

Introduced in 2024, Gems aimed to assist users in teaching their AI to execute specific tasks without needing to repeat the instructions. For example, some of Google’s pre-built Gems included a learning coach, brainstorming assistant, career counselor, coding companion, and editor. Users were also able to create Gems tailored to their own requirements, such as a running coach, nutrition consultant, or travel planner. These customized assistants could also be shared with others, which Google hoped would enhance the popularity of its Gemini AI app.

The announcement regarding the termination of Gems serves as yet another indication of why Google should refrain from hastily assigning every new AI feature its own brand identity, icon, and significant visibility in its app’s navigation — especially if it plans to rearrange these features over time, merging one into another. (To clarify, this has been a flaw in Google’s approach long before the rise of AI. For example, the company previously managed several distinct messaging and communication applications simultaneously.)

Still, even as skills, the previous Gems do not present the same user-friendliness as simply typing text into a chatbot like Meta’s Muse. Instead, Google clarifies that users will need to input a forward slash “/” in a task thread to choose the skill they intend to utilize — an interface that engineers generally favor over regular users.

The winding down of Gems was first reported over the weekend by 9to5Google.