Google’s viral research assistant just got its own app – here’s how it can help you

Google / Elyse Betters Picaro / ZDNET

Google’s high-powered research assistant is getting its own app, and Android users are getting a first look.

NotebookLM, which debuted last year, is a free AI research assistant (running on Gemini 2.0’s multimodal understanding capabilities) that helps you better understand any topic. You can give it a number of data sources, including PDF files, links to articles, YouTube video links, and Google Docs or Slides.

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Offering a few usage examples, Google says you can do things like: 

• Upload lecture recordings, textbook chapters, and research papers to break down complex concepts into simple terms.
• Upload your own research to create a polished presentation outline complete with key talking points and supporting evidence.
• Upload brainstorming notes, market research data, and competitor research info to identify current trends, find new product ideas, and discover hidden opportunities.

When it first launched, the tool was exclusive to browsers, but Google has now released it as a standalone Android app. The Apple app store listing shows a release date of May 20, but the app is available for download now for Android. 

Here’s how the tool works.

To start, you’ll open up a new notebook and add your files, links, and documents. Once NotebookLM has your information, you’ll get a summary back that takes information from all of your sources. Everything in the summary is cited, so you can see where the information came from.

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You can then take that summary and have it presented in the style that helps you learn best — a written summary, an audio summary, or even a fake podcast session where you hear two hosts banter back and forth about your topic. You can even interrupt to ask questions or take the conversation in a new direction, like you’re a podcast guest there with them. There is a few-second delay while the hosts acknowledge you and while your question is answered, so it’s not exactly smooth, but when I tried this feature out for myself, it was pretty fun. 

Google does warn that NotebookLM isn’t always going to be correct. 

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