- The latest Google Chrome update in the US adds a new side panel that opens when you click the Gemini button.
- Nano Banana can now edit images directly in Chrome browser tabs
- New agentic auto-navigation feature can handle multi-step web tasks in the background
Google is turning Chrome into an AI-driven browser for US users. With a new Gemini sidebar, built-in AI agents, and Nano Banana image editing, the latest update lets Chrome understand what you’re doing across multiple tabs and even perform tasks for you in the background, marking the biggest change in years to how the browser works.
Thanks to the recently announced Personal Intelligence feature, Gemini knows more about you than ever before, allowing it to be more helpful and context-aware in Chrome too.
Along with this, a new automatic navigation feature can take care of multi-step tasks like booking tickets or planning a vacation in the background while you continue browsing.
Here’s a closer look at the new features.
Gemini side panel
The most notable change in the new Chrome is the Gemini side panel, which is always accessible no matter which tab you’re in. However, this is not forced on you: you must always activate it. To do this, simply click on the Gemini icon in the upper right corner of Chrome and the side panel will appear, like this:
Multitasking using the side panel works by keeping your main work open in the main tab while handling a separate task in the side panel. It’s great for comparing options on different tabs, summarizing product reviews from multiple sites, or finding the time of events in chaotic calendars, all using natural language prompts in Gemini.
Nano Banana Image Editing
The upgraded Chrome also lets you use Google’s Nano Banana image generator without going anywhere else. This means that there is no longer a need to download images from web pages and then upload them separately to Gemini.
If an image is open in a browser tab, you can now enter a prompt in the side panel to edit it using Nano Banana. For example, if you find a living room design you like, you can ask Gemini to change the sofa or chairs – even referencing items open in another tab. Everything happens in the side panel and is then available for download.
Here is an example:
Browse automatically
Perhaps Chrome’s most impressive new AI feature is auto-navigation. It’s basically an AI agent that you can send to complete multi-step web tasks, like booking concert tickets or creating travel itineraries, while you get on with other things.
Auto Browse is designed to take care of online administration quietly. Instead of bouncing between tabs, you can ask it to schedule appointments, gather tax documents, check if bills have been paid, or manage subscriptions on your behalf. It can also handle more time-consuming tasks, like collecting quotes from plumbers or electricians, filing expense reports, and speeding up tasks like driver’s license renewal.
AI agents in browsers are not new, Perplexity’s Comet browser is a good example, but they are fundamentally changing the way we use the web by saving time. A common obstacle is that many booking sites require logins. Chrome solves this problem by using Chrome’s password manager to log you in automatically.
Auto-navigation is designed to pause and explicitly ask for your confirmation or prompt you to perform certain tasks, like making a purchase or posting to social media. Autonavigation is currently rolling out in preview in the United States to Google AI Pro and Google AI Ultra subscribers.
Here’s an example of automatic navigation in action:
Personal intelligence and connected applications
The new Chrome uses Google’s recently announced Personal Intelligence feature, as well as Connected Apps. This brings together information from across Google’s ecosystem to add context and awareness to your requests.
For example, if Personal Intelligence finds the name of your child’s school in your Gmail, it can determine term dates, which is useful if you’re looking through vacations in different tabs and asking, “Which one is my kids’ spring break?” »
Personal Intelligence also uses the context of past conversations to provide more personalized responses over time. The new browser also has new defenses designed to protect you against the latest security threats.
Using connected apps, you can also ask Gemini to send an email using your Gmail. Here’s how it works:
Is it too much AI?
By putting AI at the center of web browsing, the new Chrome seems like a natural evolution of Google’s most popular browser. With the growing popularity of Gemini over ChatGPT after the release of Nano Banana and Gemini 3, integrating it directly into Chrome could give Google’s chatbot another boost and make users less likely to look elsewhere for AI tools.
Striking a balance between feeling like AI is unnecessarily baked into products and how useful it actually is will always be a tough decision to make, but the fact that the new AI side panel only appears when you click the Gemini button in Chrome helps make it less intrusive.
Gemini in Chrome remains a US-only feature for now, and the new features are rolling out today.
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