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Google plans to implement a significant update to its artificial intelligence engine, Gemini AI, which will have a direct effect on user data. Starting September 2, the company will begin using a sample of individual uploads, including files, pictures, videos, and screenshots, to train Gemini and improve related products.
The new update is a subtle yet crucial rebranding. The current Gemini Apps Activity preference will soon be renamed to Keep Activity. More importantly, this preference will be enabled by default unless users choose to turn it off.
The update immediately triggers questions of consent, transparency, and data protection. Privacy specialists contend that making such a feature available necessarily involves risking subjecting sensitive personal information to AI algorithms without users’ explicit consent.
Even as Google insists the data will be used responsibly and only in samples, critics note that most users might never know the change is coming, particularly since the new ‘Keep Activity’ name is less transparent than the current ‘Gemini Apps Activity’ designation.
The good news for those concerned about data sharing is that it is easy to turn the feature off. On desktop, it involves signing in at Gemini.Google.com, going to Settings and Help, choosing Activity, and switching Gemini activity off. They may also erase previous data to cut exposure short.
On mobile, the process involves opening the Gemini app, tapping the account icon, going to Gemini Apps Activity, and switching it off. The option to delete older activity is also available.
However, Google notes that even after pulling out, some data may remain on its servers for 72 hours before being completely deleted. Users with multiple Google accounts will need to repeat the process across profiles.
Also Read: Google Gemini New Update Brings Memory and Private Chat Mode
The feature is now seen as Gemini Apps Activity, but after the September update goes live, it will be seen under the name Keep Activity in both the app and web. The renaming, along with the default ‘on’ setting, makes users pay more attention if they do not want their private chats and files sampled to train AI.
Briefly, Google's drive to make Gemini AI more refined has a price tag attached: enhanced performance on the one hand, and more profound concerns about privacy on the other.
