Quick answer
As of October 7, 2026, Google's AI assistant is called Gemini. AI Overviews and AI Mode are separate features inside Google Search. Google also sells or documents Gemini in Workspace, Gemini Notebook (once NotebookLM) and developer tools. This page maps 10 current names, 4 renamed ones and where you meet each.
Key takeaways
- Gemini is the name of Google's assistant app and of its model family; AI Overviews and AI Mode are names of Google Search features (Google's pages, read October 7, 2026).
- Google's own pages say Bard became Gemini, Duet AI for Google Workspace became Gemini for Google Workspace, NotebookLM became Gemini Notebook, and Vertex AI is now part of Gemini Enterprise Agent Platform.
- Google's AI Overviews help page, as read, does not name a model; its AI Mode page names Gemini 3 Pro for one option. Model numbers differ between two Google pages, so use the product name you actually see on screen.
- Rule from this site: identify the name by what you were doing when you saw it, then open Google's page for that name, not a page about another one.
- Google's Search Central page says there are no additional requirements to appear in AI Overviews or AI Mode beyond being indexed and eligible for a snippet.
What is Google's AI called?
Google's AI assistant and model family are called Gemini; AI Overviews and AI Mode are separate features in Google Search. That is the answer as of October 7, 2026, from Google's own pages. Google uses "Gemini" inside many other names, and some older names have been replaced. "Google AI" is not one product.
Which Google AI name do you mean?
Match the name to what you were doing when you saw it. This list is this site's own aid; each name in it is defined by a Google page in the tables that follow.
- You searched on google.com and a summary appeared above the links: AI Overviews.
- You tapped "AI Mode" under the Search bar, or went to google.com/ai: AI Mode.
- You opened gemini.google.com or a phone app and typed to a chat assistant: the Gemini app.
- You clicked Gemini inside Gmail, Docs, Sheets, Slides, Drive or Chat on a work account: Gemini in Google Workspace.
- You uploaded documents and asked for summaries or audio: Gemini Notebook, once NotebookLM.
- A developer or vendor said "AI Studio", "Vertex AI" or "Agent Platform": developer tools.
- A bill or upgrade screen says "Google AI Plus", "Pro" or "Ultra": subscription plan names.
- A page or colleague says "Bard" or "Duet AI": old names, covered below.
What does each current name mean, and where do you meet it?
Ten names cover what an owner is likely to run into. The second column is Google's own wording, quoted as printed; it is Google's description, not this site's judgment. The last column says whether the page prints a paid-plan requirement. Pages were read on October 7, 2026.
| Name (Google page read) | Google's wording | Where you meet it (this site's summary) | Paid plan stated on the page read? |
|---|---|---|---|
| Gemini app (Google overview) | "Gemini is an interface to a multimodal LLM (handling text, audio, images and more)." | gemini.google.com and the Gemini mobile app | Google's plan page lists a free plan with a Google Account |
| Gemini models (Gemini Apps Help) | "Gemini has the following available models: Gemini Flash-Lite is an efficient workhorse model designed for speed." | The model picker: you "click the model name" in the text box | Not stated on the page we read |
| AI Overviews (Search Help) | "AI Overviews can take the work out of searching by providing an AI-generated snapshot with key information and links to dig deeper." | Google Search results, on queries where Google's systems choose to show one | None printed; the page says "To all users" in listed countries |
| AI Mode (Search Help) | "AI Mode is Google’s most powerful AI search experience." | google.com/ai, the AI Mode button under the Search bar, or the Google app | None printed for AI Mode; the "Pro" model option lists "Google AI Plus, Pro, and Ultra subscribers" |
| Gemini in Google Workspace (Workspace Help) | "Gemini in the side panel of Gmail, Docs, Sheets, Slides, Drive, and Chat" | Inside those apps, on a work account | Page says features "depend on Google Workspace edition" |
| Gemini Notebook (Google blog) | "It's the same standalone product, now doing more across the Google ecosystem and updated with a secure cloud computer." | A standalone product; Google's post says notebooks can also be accessed and created inside the Gemini app | Listed on Google's plan page under the Free plan |
| Google AI Studio (plan page, Developer tab) | "Experiment with the latest Gemini models and start building with the Gemini API." | A developer site | "No cost to start" is printed, with "Content used to improve our products" listed beside it |
| Gemini Enterprise Agent Platform (Google Cloud) | "Gemini Enterprise Agent Platform is Google Cloud's comprehensive platform for developers to build, scale, govern and optimize agents." | Google Cloud, used by developers | The page offers a "Pricing calculator"; it is developer billing, not an app plan |
| Gemini Enterprise (Google Cloud blog) | "Gemini Enterprise brings the best of Google AI to every employee through an intuitive chat interface that acts as a single front door for AI in the workplace." | Organizations (this site's reading); Workspace admin help lists "Gemini Enterprise – Business edition" licenses | The cloud post names no plan; Workspace admin help has a page titled "Manage your Gemini Enterprise – Business edition subscription" |
| Google AI plans (plan page) | "Choose a plan that is right for you." | Upgrade and billing screens: Google AI Plus, Pro, Ultra | They are the paid plans; prices and limits are not repeated here |
Easy to mix up: "Gemini Enterprise" (for employees) and "Gemini Enterprise Agent Platform" (for developers) are different products on Google's pages. For what an agent is, see AI Agents for Small Business.
Which names has Google replaced or retired?
Four names an owner may still see have been replaced, and Google's own pages say so. Each row gives the date as printed on a Google page. The Vertex AI row rests on a product page plus an announcement post that calls the new platform an evolution of Vertex AI, not a plain rename.
| Old name | Current name | Google's sentence | Date printed on the page |
|---|---|---|---|
| Bard | Gemini | "To reflect this, Bard will now simply be known as Gemini." | Feb 08, 2024 |
| Duet AI for Google Workspace | Gemini for Google Workspace | "Starting today, Duet AI for Google Workspace is Gemini for Google Workspace, giving customers access to our most capable AI models." | Feb 21, 2024 |
| NotebookLM | Gemini Notebook | "We’re renaming NotebookLM to Gemini Notebook." | Jul 16, 2026 |
| Vertex AI | Gemini Enterprise Agent Platform | "Gemini Enterprise Agent Platform (formerly Vertex AI)" (product page) | April 22, 2026 (announcement post) |
Google's overview page also dates the original Bard launch: "We initially launched Gemini (then called Bard) as an experiment in March 2023 in accordance with our AI Principles." Google's product page still shows the old name beside the new one: "All the power of Vertex AI you know and love, now within Gemini Enterprise Agent Platform."
Is "Gemini" the model, the app, or both?
Both, and Google's pages use the word at both levels. Google's overview page defines the app as an interface to a model, and the Gemini Apps Help page names model sizes you can pick: Flash-Lite, Flash and Pro.
AI Overviews are the case where the model is not named. The AI Overviews help page, as read, never mentions Gemini, and Google's Search Central page says "AI Mode and AI Overviews may use different models and techniques, so the set of responses and links they show will vary." The AI Mode help page does name a model: it says "You can use Gemini 3 Pro in AI Mode by selecting" Pro from a menu, and that option is for subscribers. This page does not claim which model writes any given AI Overview.
Version numbers also differ by page, each printed here as the page prints it. On October 7, 2026, Google's plan page listed "Access to 3.6 Flash Varying access to 3.1 Pro" under the Free plan and, in its Google Search line, "Higher access to Gemini 3 Pro"; the AI Mode page and the Gemini Apps Help page also say Gemini 3 Pro. These pages serve different surfaces; this page does not say they conflict or which number is newest, and a version number dates quickly.
Does the name matter for being found in AI answers?
Only a little: Google says there is nothing special to do for AI Overviews or AI Mode beyond normal Search eligibility. Google's Search Central page states: "There are no additional requirements to appear in AI Overviews or AI Mode, nor other special optimizations necessary." To appear as a supporting link, "a page must be indexed and eligible to be shown in Google Search with a snippet, fulfilling the Search technical requirements."
The same page adds a limit: "Indexing and serving isn't guaranteed." Also, AI Overviews, per Google, "cannot be turned off" for Search users, and the "Web filter" option shows results without them, so customers searching for you may see an AI summary before your listing. For where AI fits in a small business more widely, see AI Automation for Small Business: A Practical 2026 Guide.
What should you do next?
Open Google's page for the one name that matches your situation. On a Google Workspace account, start with the page for your edition (your admin can name it): Google says features depend on edition, and that turning the Gemini app off has "no effect on other AI features" in Workspace services. On a personal account, Google's AI Mode page says the Pro option needs a signed-in personal Google Account.
Ask any vendor or freelancer who says "we use Google AI" which of these names they mean: a chat app, a Search feature or a developer tool.
How was this page made?
This page is this site's reading of Google's own pages, opened on October 7, 2026, from outside the United States, so a page may show you different availability or wording. Names and availability change; check the date above. No other company's products are compared. The decision list and the closing advice are this site's.
This page was drafted with Claude, an AI model made by Anthropic, and checked against each vendor's published material on October 7, 2026. Anthropic is a competitor of Google's in AI assistants, and it is not covered on this page.
FAQ
Is Google AI an AI?
"Google AI" is not one product. Google's pages read on October 7, 2026 use separate names: the Gemini app, Gemini in Workspace apps, AI Overviews and AI Mode in Search, Gemini Notebook, and developer tools.
What is Google Bard used for?
Nothing now under that name. Google's February 2024 post says "Bard will now simply be known as Gemini." If a page or a colleague still says Bard, they mean the Gemini assistant.
How do I access AI on Google?
It depends on the name. Google's AI Mode page says you can reach AI Mode by going to google.com/ai, by tapping AI Mode under the Search bar, or from the Google app home screen. AI Overviews appear in results when Google's systems decide they help. The Gemini app is at gemini.google.com.
Is Google AI free to use?
Google's plan page lists a Free plan for the Gemini app with a Google Account, and lists paid Google AI plans above it. The pages we read for AI Overviews do not mention a plan. Check Google's plan page for current limits and prices.
Why does the Gemini version number differ between pages?
Google's plan page and AI Mode help page, both read October 7, 2026, name different model numbers. This page does not explain why; check the date on any number.