Google is rebranding NotebookLM, its AI-powered note-taking and research tool, as Gemini Notebook. The Verge reports the company announced the change on Thursday, and according to The Verge the app will remain a standalone product even as it integrates more deeply across Gemini and Google Search.
The rename is largely about signaling tighter integration. Engadget notes that Google had already built NotebookLM into Gemini, and the new name reflects that closer relationship. TechCrunch frames the move as part of a broader "renaming streak" at Google, and reports that users will soon be able to reach their notebooks through AI Mode in Search.
The update isn't just cosmetic. Per Techmeme, citing Google's Josh Woodward, the refreshed product gives every notebook a "secure cloud computer," allowing it to write and execute code natively. Woodward described it as the same standalone product, now doing more across Google's ecosystem.
The tool has been through several identities. The Verge notes that Google first revealed the product under the name Project Tailwind before it became NotebookLM.
Why it matters: Folding NotebookLM under the Gemini brand consolidates Google's consumer AI offerings under one recognizable name, while native code execution turns a note-and-research assistant into something closer to a general-purpose work tool that can actually run tasks, not just summarize them.