Google is replacing Gems with skills in Gemini and Workspace
Google announced on 30 September that skills take over from Gems, so any Gem your business relies on will need rebuilding.
By Jason Sibley
What happened
On 30 September 2026, Google announced that it is replacing Gems with "skills" in Gemini and Google Workspace. A skill is a reusable set of custom instructions. You run one by typing a forward slash, in the Gemini app or in most Workspace apps. Google's own examples include a brand voice skill for drafting blog posts, and a business user pairing a "vendor evaluator" skill with an "executive email drafter" skill.
Skills work inline in a normal chat, and you can stack several in one prompt. They are built on the open Markdown SKILL.md standard, so skills made on other platforms can be copied in. Google Docs has a skill builder for crafting skills and sharing them with your team.
There is one catch. Skills in Workspace and skills in the Gemini app do not sync. If you want both, create them separately in each.
The rollout is under way. Workspace Rapid Release domains started on 5 October and finish by 12 October. Scheduled Release domains start on 19 October and finish in mid-November. The Gemini app follows from 13 October. Skills are available on Business plans from Starter up to Plus, on the Enterprise plans, and with some add-ons. Workspace skills are for users over 18 only.
Gems are on the way out. You can no longer create Workspace Studio flows that use the "Ask a Gem" step, though existing ones still work. On 17 November, Gems move to the Settings panel of the Gemini app. No sooner than 1 March 2027, business and enterprise accounts will no longer be able to create, edit or use Gems. Studio flows with Ask a Gem will stop working, and any Gems left in the Gemini app will be migrated automatically to draft skills. Google will give admins at least 30 days' notice before that migration.
Personal accounts lose Gems support from November 2026. Opal, Google's mini-app experiment, also turns down in November.
Sources: Google Workspace Updates, 30 Sep 2026, Google blog, 30 Sep 2026
What it means for a small business
If you built Gems to help with quotes or proposals, or to keep your brand voice steady, those will need rebuilding as skills. The migration Google describes produces drafts, so you would still have to check them before trusting them.
The split between Workspace and the Gemini app matters most. A skill you build in one place will not appear in the other. Decide where your team actually does the work, and build there first.
March 2027 is the earliest date for business accounts, so nobody needs to panic. It is still a poor plan to leave this until the notice arrives. The Gem your team uses every day is the one that will hurt when it stops.
If anyone on your team runs a Gem through a personal Google account, that one loses support sooner, from November.
What you can do this week
- List every Gem your business has made. Note what each does, who uses it and how often.
- Pick the most used one and rebuild it as a Workspace skill. Test it on a real quote or email before telling the team it is ready.
- Check any Workspace Studio flows for the "Ask a Gem" step. Existing ones still run, but they stop working no sooner than 1 March 2027, so note which need a new approach.
- Ask whoever looks after your Google admin which release track your domain is on (Rapid or Scheduled). That tells you whether skills have arrived yet.
- If you also want a skill in the Gemini app, build it there separately, and keep a plain copy of the instructions somewhere safe.
How we can help
If rebuilding feels like a chore, our SMB AI sessions can walk you through it, and our AI sales & marketing desk can help turn your quote and proposal routines into skills. Our free website help is there too if your site needs a look at the same time.