Gmail's new AI feature sorts emails by relevance, not date
What's the story
Google has made email search more efficient for users.
In a major update to its Gmail service, the company has announced that it will use artificial intelligence (AI) to prioritize recency, frequently accessed emails, and regular contacts in email searches.
This is a departure from the previous method where emails were sorted chronologically based solely on keywords.
Enhanced efficiency
Update aims to streamline email searches
In its latest blog post, Google emphasized that the new AI-driven capability has been designed to keep the most relevant emails at the top of search results.
The company said, "With this update, the emails you're looking for are far more likely to be at the top of your search results — saving you valuable time and helping you find important information more easily."
The enhancement will make email searches more efficient for users.
User control
Gmail introduces toggle for search preferences
Along with the AI update, Google is also adding a new toggle to switch between "Most relevant" or "Most recent" emails on a search results page.
This toggle is particularly for those who like to see their search results in chronological order instead of the default "Most relevant" setting.
The update is being rolled out globally on web and mobile versions of Gmail for personal Google account holders. Google will expand the feature to business users in the future.
Competitive edge
Gmail's new features compete with Apple's Mail app
The AI-powered search feature comes as part of Google's plan to make its email service more attractive and take on Apple's Mail app.
Apple added a bunch of Gmail-like features to iOS 18 last year.
In the last few months, Google also added a Gemini-powered feature to Gmail to let users add events directly from an email into their Google Calendar.