Gmail privacy and AI: your inbox, separate choices

01 / Three smart controls

Check three independent smart-feature controls

Start with the account you use and the place you are using AI. Keep the useful tools you want, and review the permissions around them. Menus and available features can vary by account, device and region.

On desktop Gmail, open Settings → See all settings → General. Review Smart features for Gmail, Chat and Meet. Then open Google Workspace smart features → Manage Workspace smart feature settings and review the separate Workspace and other-Google-products choices. Save your changes. Google Gmail Help, smart features and independent controls

The first controls personalization such as inbox categories and writing suggestions. The second covers cross-Workspace personalization, including some Gemini features. The third permits Workspace data to personalize other Google products. Turning off one does not turn off the others. Disabling features can remove conveniences; learnings from prior smart-feature improvement may persist. Defaults and availability differ by region and account, and app versions can affect where controls appear. Google Gmail Help, smart features and independent controls

02 / Which Gemini?

Know which Gemini you mean

Inside Gmail: Google says Gemini in Workspace, for Google AI plan users, uses content to answer requests but does not use it to train or improve Gemini or other generative AI models. It says prompts and generated outputs are not stored without permission. These are not promises of zero storage across every Google service. Google separately permits aggregated or anonymized interactions to improve useful Workspace features. Google Gmail Help, Gemini in Workspace privacy

Gmail connected to the Gemini app: Personal Intelligence has different terms. With Keep Activity on, relevant email summaries, excerpts and inferences can help train generative AI and can be human-reviewed. In some cases, a brief or especially relevant email may itself be the summary. Google says it takes measures to reduce personal information; this is not a guarantee that confidential content cannot be seen. This is also not the same as saying Google directly trains on everyone's entire inbox. Gemini Help, personalization with Connected Apps

03 / Connections & history

Review connections and Gemini activity separately

On the Gemini website, open Settings & help → Personal Intelligence → Connected Apps. Review the Google Workspace connection and disconnect it if you do not want that personalization. Availability depends on eligibility, region and rollout. Personal Intelligence is for eligible adult personal accounts, not work/school accounts; it requires Keep Activity and, for Workspace data, the relevant other-products smart-feature permission. Gemini Help, connect Google apps

Next, open Settings & help → Activity. You can turn off Keep Activity and choose to delete activity too. Turning it off limits future training use and disables some connected features; it is not an instant erase-all switch. Gemini Help, manage/delete activity

Gemini can retain chats for up to 72 hours when activity is off or a chat is temporary, for service and safety purposes. Feedback can still be used for improvement; safety handling can involve human review. Material already reviewed can be retained for up to three years separately from your account. Gemini Apps Privacy Hub

Disconnecting Gmail or deleting an email does not delete Gemini activity. Review that history separately. Uploading an email screenshot is also a sharing decision, not a workaround that preserves Gmail's in-product protections. Gemini Help, personalization with Connected Apps Google Gmail Help, Gemini in Workspace privacy

04 / Work, school & trials

Work, school and experiments need a separate check

A work or school address is not enough to establish which Gemini protections apply. For qualifying Workspace licenses where Gemini is a core service, Google says chats and uploads are not human-reviewed or used to improve generative models. Additional-service accounts can have different rules. Ask your administrator which license and service terms apply. Gemini work/school account protections

Early-access Workspace Experiments is another exception. Its personal-account notice allows collection of prompts, referenced content and feedback for product improvement, with human review. Do not assume the standard Gemini-in-Gmail commitments cover experiments. Workspace Experiments personal-account notice

05 / External images

Reduce external-image signals

Desktop Gmail: Settings → See all settings → Images → Ask before displaying external images → Save Changes. Gmail already processes images to protect your computer and location information, but Google says senders may sometimes still learn that an email was opened. Asking first adds a choice; it does not prevent every tracking method or make link clicks anonymous. Gmail images

06 / Mailbox permissions

Audit apps with mailbox access

In your Google Account's linked-apps area, inspect apps with Access to your Google Account, review each app's permissions, and remove access you no longer need. A basic Google sign-in is different from permission to read or modify mailbox data. Google Account linked apps management

Revoking access stops future authorized access, but it does not automatically erase copies a developer already holds. Contact that developer if you want those copies deleted. Google Account third-party access

07 / Ads & deletion

Keep ads, AI and deletion distinct

Google says Gmail does not scan messages to select Gmail ads. Its current help page also says the no-content-for-ads commitment has an exception when you choose to make that data available to other ad-supported Google services, such as personalized Search. Review cross-product sharing rather than treating an ad preference as an AI switch. Turning off ad personalization does not remove every ad. Gmail ads

Deleted Gmail messages normally stay in Trash for 30 days unless you empty it sooner. Gmail message deletion Work and school retention policies or legal holds can preserve messages beyond what you see in your mailbox. Google Workspace Vault Gmail holds Deleting email also does not withdraw recipients' copies or separately shared data.

08 / The Grav difference

How Grav differs

You do not have to abandon email or the public apps you enjoy to be deliberate about information sharing. Grav is being built as a home for existing relationships alongside those tools, not an email replacement.

Grav’s Grav Privacy Policy describes invite-only spaces, chronological feeds and no ads. Grav Messages are server-backed: account information and shared content are stored to operate the service. Audience controls do not mean zero storage. Read the Grav Privacy Proof Center for more detail.

Sources & references

Original documentation behind this guide, last checked October 30, 2026. A source check is not necessarily a change to the advice.

Change history

October 30, 2026 · First edition

Added separate Gmail smart-feature controls, Gemini product and account distinctions, activity and connection choices, mailbox access, external images and retention limits.

If a label or policy has changed, tell us what you found. Please do not send private photos, passwords or account details.