Google now allows users to load purchased e-books from Google Play Books directly into Gemini Notebook, the former AI application NotebookLM. According to the company, the new feature Expert Intelligence integrates more than 100,000 book titles from major publishers and answers questions directly from the book text. The launch is initially exclusive to the USA.
Function anchors answers directly in the book text
Anyone who has purchased a supported e-book from Google Play Books can load it as a source into a Gemini Notebook and ask questions about it. According to Google, the AI anchors its answers directly in the original text and can create quiz questions, infographics, or spoken summaries, called Audio Overviews, upon request. Users can also link the book with their own notes or additional files – similar to how Google already enabled multiple files in Google Drive in July.
At launch, titles from publishers such as Penguin Random House, Macmillan, O’Reilly Media, Bloomsbury, Johns Hopkins University Press, and De Gruyter Brill are compatible. More than 15 non-fiction authors, including Steven Pinker and Michael Pollan, have also contributed curated Featured Notebooks to their own works.
The specialist portal 9to5Google confirms that shared notebooks require a purchased copy per contributing person – a hurdle against unauthorized sharing. Since the renaming from NotebookLM in July 2026, Gemini Notebook reportedly has more than 30 million users and over 600,000 organizations – numbers that are not independently verified.
Google expands function amid ongoing publisher lawsuit
The initiative comes at a time when Google is under legal pressure regarding AI training. Publishers Hachette, Elsevier, and Cengage, as well as author Scott Turow, are suing the company since July 13, 2026, alleging that Gemini was trained on millions of copyrighted books, partly from illegal sources. Expert Intelligence, on the other hand, operates through already paid purchases and integrated publishing partners and does not directly touch on the lawsuit. Google describes the initiative as a company-wide effort to make trustworthy sources accessible across multiple AI products in the future.
The company announces plans to expand the function to the Gemini app and the AI mode of Google Search in the coming months. Later, third-party subscriptions, textbooks, and corporate reports are also expected to be added. The expansion is part of a series of Gemini enhancements in recent weeks. The assistant surpassed the mark of one billion monthly users in August, an increase of 650 million since October 2025.
It will be crucial whether Google makes collaboration with publishers a blueprint for further licensed AI functions. It is also uncertain whether the legal dispute over training will shape the relationship with the publishing industry – more than individual product features like Expert Intelligence. It remains unclear when users outside the USA – for example, in Germany or the EU – will be able to access Expert Intelligence. Google has not yet provided a date.
