NotebookLM（現Gemini Notebook）
: How to use it, features, and the business problems it solves

What is NotebookLM

NotebookLM is a Google-built AI research and thinking partner that answers based only on the materials you upload. It is now renamed to "Gemini Notebook" and is built on the latest Gemini models (provided by Google; the official domain has moved to notebook.google, with the old notebook.google redirecting there). When you load sources such as PDFs, websites, YouTube videos, audio, and Google Docs, it summarizes, answers questions about, and creates materials from their contents. Unlike a typical chat AI, it limits its answers to the sources you load and shows citations.

Source: Gemini Notebook (NotebookLM) official site

Answering with citations, based only on "your own materials"

The heart of NotebookLM is source grounding (basing answers on the materials you load). Answers are generated within the scope of the trusted sources you provide, with citations showing which passages they are based on. This lets you quickly grasp the contents of your materials while curbing the "plausible-sounding errors" that tend to occur with general generative AI. Organizational and school data is never used for training, and even for personal use it is not used for learning unless you share feedback.

The flow from upload to understanding

The materials you load turn into a personalized AI expert.

How to use

1. Create a notebook

   Go to notebook.google and create a new notebook with your Google account.

2. Upload sources

   Add the materials you want to research (PDFs, websites, YouTube videos, audio, Google Docs, and more).

3. Ask questions and have a dialogue

   Ask about the contents of your sources, and answers come back with citations. Use it to grasp key points and do preliminary research.

4. Generate deliverables

   Generate an Audio Overview (a podcast-style conversational audio), study guide, briefing doc, FAQ, timeline, mind map, and more.

5. Share and put it to use

   Share the generated content and notebooks, and put them to work for your team or your studies.

Features

Pricing

You can use it for free, and limits and available models increase as it is included in Google AI subscriptions (Plus / Pro / Ultra). Higher tiers are available in limited regions (as of August 2026).

Usage limits also vary by the type of deliverable. Please check the official plan page for the latest supported regions and limits.

How it differs from other AI research tools

NotebookLM stands out for being specialized in "answering with citations, based only on the trusted sources you choose". Its aim differs from general-purpose generative AI and AI search that answer from the whole web, making it well suited to preliminary research, reading comprehension of materials, and studying. Its Audio Overview (a feature that turns sources into podcast-style conversational audio) is also unique.

If you want to research the whole web with sources, Perplexity is a good comparison; for AI search in Japanese, Felo; and Genspark, which handles everything end to end from material generation to slides, is also worth comparing.

The information on this page is based on content published on the official site as of August 2026. Please check the official site for the latest specifications and pricing.