Google: Gmail and Photos Data May Personalize Ads via AI

Google has updated its privacy policy to clarify that using Personal Intelligence features in Search or Gemini may allow it to display targeted ads based on user activity in other connected services. The update takes effect from October 16 and states that Search may process some data the user allows it to access to personalize content, including ads.

The company stated that it does not show personalized ads based on content from Drive, Gmail, or Photos, unless the user chooses to make the data from these services available to other services that support personalized ads. It explained that this does not happen by default, but it may change if the user chooses to share photos or messages with "AI Mode" and other search tools via the "Personal Intelligence" feature.

Google unveiled the "Personal Intelligence" feature in Gemini in January 2026, which allows connecting services like Gmail, Photos, and YouTube to provide personalized answers along with chat history and preferences. The feature is currently rolling out in beta to eligible users over 18 worldwide, excluding the European Economic Area, Switzerland, the UK, and Nigeria.

Users wishing to opt out can disconnect apps from the Personal Intelligence feature or disable personalized recommendations in the Search services personalization settings. The update comes at a time when AI companies are expanding their ads, as OpenAI expanded advertising on ChatGPT to 26 more countries, bringing the total to 89.

What do these terms mean?

Personal Intelligence: A feature that connects a user's various services to an AI assistant to provide personalized answers based on their data and chat history.

Ad Personalization: Selecting the ad shown to a user based on their interests, activity, or data, instead of displaying the same ad to everyone.

Privacy Policy: A document explaining what user data a company collects, how it uses it, and with whom it shares it.

European Economic Area: A group of countries that apply unified data protection rules, including European Union countries plus Iceland, Liechtenstein, and Norway.