Artificial Intelligence (AI)

Google’s Gemini AI now remembers past chats by default

Ken Metral

Ken Metral

— 2 min read
Cosmico - Google’s Gemini AI now remembers past chats by default
Credit: Google Gemini/Alphabet, Inc.

Google is introducing a major update to its Gemini AI chatbot that will let it automatically remember your past conversations and use that knowledge to personalize future responses — without you having to prompt it.

From Manual to Automatic Memory

Previously, Gemini could remember your preferences and interests, but only if you explicitly told it to. With this new rollout, once the setting is turned on, Gemini will automatically recall “key details and preferences” from prior chats. For example, if you once asked Gemini for ideas for a YouTube channel about Japanese culture, it might later suggest making videos about trying Japanese food when you request fresh content ideas.

This capability will first arrive for Gemini 2.5 Pro users in select countries starting today, before expanding to more regions and to the Gemini 2.5 Flash model.

Privacy and Control

While Google will enable the memory feature by default, you can switch it off at any time.
To disable it:

  • Go to Settings in the Gemini app
  • Select Personal Context
  • Toggle off Your past chats with Gemini

Google spokesperson Elijah Lawal emphasized that while personalization is a priority, user control remains crucial:

“Equally crucial is giving you easy controls to choose the experience that’s best for you, so you can turn this feature on and off at any time.”

The company also noted that it’s continually refining safeguards to prevent problematic behavior — a growing concern in the AI space. OpenAI, for example, recently added measures to detect emotional distress in ChatGPT following reports of “delusional” chats linked to its cross-chat memory feature.

More Privacy Updates: “Keep Activity” and Temporary Chats

Alongside the memory update, Google is making changes to its privacy settings:

  • Gemini Apps Activity will be renamed Keep Activity in the coming weeks.
  • If enabled, Google will use a sample of your file and photo uploads to Gemini to improve its services, starting September 2nd.
  • The setting will be off by default, and will remain off if you already had Gemini Apps Activity disabled.

For more private interactions, Google is adding temporary chats. These:

  • Won’t appear in your recent chats
  • Won’t be stored in Keep Activity
  • Won’t be used to train Google’s AI models or personalize responses
  • Are automatically deleted after 72 hours

Temporary chats are designed for sensitive or short-term inquiries where you don’t want details carried over into future conversations.

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