Google Expands Gemini Skills to Free Accounts Before Gem Sunset

Google is expanding its Gemini Skills to free accounts in preparation for the sunset of Gems in November 2026. This means users with personal Google accounts aged 18 or older can access Skills, previously only available to those with Google AI Pro or Ultra subscriptions.

The migration from Gems to Skills will begin on November 17, but Gems will not be completely removed until June 2027 for Workspace Education accounts and March 2027 for Workspace and Enterprise accounts. During this time, users can still access their existing Gems through the Skills page in Settings.

New features are being added to Skills, including the ability to import files from Google Drive or Gemini Notebooks and share Skills with other users. This move by Google is seen as a positive development for free account holders who were initially concerned about losing access to their Gems.