Google is killing off Gemini’s Gems in favor of ‘skills’

Google is shutting down a Gemini feature called "Gems" that let users build custom AI assistants for specific tasks, replacing it with a new feature called "skills" starting in November 2026. Users' existing Gems will automatically convert to skills without requiring any action, and the custom assistants will remain usable until the transition date. The shift reflects a broader move toward all-in-one AI agents, though the new skills interface requires users to type a forward slash to select which skill to use, which is less intuitive than simply typing commands to a chatbot.