NotebookLM
by Google
AI-powered research assistant built on Gemini 3 that transforms sources into structured insights, audio podcasts, mind maps, and collaborative notebooks
See https://notebooklm.google.com
Features
AI Foundation:
- Built on Gemini 3 (Flash variant) with improved reasoning and multimodal understanding
- Grounds all responses in user-uploaded sources with citations and relevant quotes
- Becomes an expert on your specific materials
Content Generation Outputs:
- Audio Overview: AI-generated podcast discussions with customizable formats (Brief, Critique, Debate)
- Video Overview: Visual content from sources
- Mind Maps: Interactive exploration of complex topics and connections (added March 2025)
- Data Tables: Structured tables synthesized from sources, exportable to Google Sheets (December 2025)
- Reports: Tailored summaries and analysis
- Flashcards & Quizzes: Learning aids generated from documents
- Infographics: Visual representations of information
- Slide Decks: Presentation materials from sources
- Learning Guide: Comprehensive study assistance
Source Support:
- Google Docs, Google Slides, Google Sheets
- Microsoft Word documents
- PDF files
- Images
- Web links and URLs
- YouTube videos
- Meeting transcripts
- Research papers
Collaboration:
- Real-time collaboration like Google Docs
- Invite viewers or editors
- Share notebooks across teams
- Integration with Canvas by Instructure, PowerSchool Schoology Learning
- Google Classroom integration for educators
Customization:
- Chat customization expanded from 500 to 10,000 characters
- Create detailed AI personas and custom instructions
- Audio Overview customization with text prompts
- Multiple audio formats: Brief, Critique, Debate
Platform Access:
- Web interface
- Mobile apps (Android and iOS)
- Deep Research integration (Gemini feature)
Superpowers
NotebookLM stands out with its source-grounded AI and audio generation capabilities, making it ideal for:
- Researchers and academics synthesizing complex materials into structured insights with citations
- Students converting study materials into engaging audio discussions and flashcards
- Educators creating class materials, quizzes, and collaborative assignments
- Content creators generating podcast scripts and audio content from research notes
- Professionals digesting reports, meeting transcripts, and documents while multitasking
- Teams collaborating on shared knowledge bases with AI-powered analysis
Real-world applications:
- Convert textbook chapters into audio discussions for commute learning
- Generate structured data tables from unstructured research documents
- Create interactive mind maps to explore complex project connections
- Build collaborative notebooks for team research and knowledge sharing
- Produce flashcards and quizzes from course materials
- Transform blog posts into podcast-style audio summaries
Key advantages:
- All outputs grounded in user sources (reduces hallucinations)
- Audio Overviews use SoundStorm for natural conversational quality
- Powered by long-context Gemini 1.5 Pro LLM
- Free tier available for any Google account
- Mobile-first with iOS/Android apps
- Seamless Google Workspace integration
Pricing
Free Tier:
- Available to any Google account
- Core features included
- Usage limits apply
- Basic Audio Overview, chat, and content generation
NotebookLM Plus ($19.99/month):
- Bundled in Google AI Pro subscription
- Higher usage limits
- Advanced features
- No advertisements
Education Integration:
- Free for educators using Canvas, Schoology, or Google Classroom
- Create and assign notebooks directly from LMS
Audio Overview Details
How It Works:
- Upload sources (PDFs, links, videos, documents)
- Click “Generate Audio Overview”
- AI creates outline, revises, generates detailed script, critiques
- SoundStorm converts script into natural two-host conversation
- Generation typically takes a couple minutes
Formats:
- Brief: Quick summary discussion
- Critique: Critical analysis with multiple perspectives
- Debate: Opposing viewpoints on source material
Technical:
- Powered by Gemini 1.5 Pro (long-context LLM)
- SoundStorm audio synthesis for natural voices
- Currently English-only
- May introduce occasional inaccuracies
- Cannot interrupt hosts during playback
Customization:
- Add text prompts to guide discussion focus
- Specify topics to emphasize or skip
- Control tone and depth of conversation
Use Cases
Education:
- Convert lecture notes into audio study materials
- Generate quizzes and flashcards from textbooks
- Create Learning Guides for complex subjects
- Build collaborative class notebooks
Research:
- Organize multiple papers into structured insights
- Generate mind maps of research connections
- Extract data tables from reports
- Cite sources automatically in summaries
Content Creation:
- Transform research into podcast scripts
- Generate audio summaries for blog bonus content
- Create social media audio snippets
- Develop presentation slides from notes
Professional:
- Digest meeting transcripts on the go
- Analyze sales documents and reports
- Create team knowledge bases
- Generate executive summaries
Sources
- Transform sources into structured Data Tables in NotebookLM
- Here’s everything Google added to NotebookLM in November 2025
- New features available in NotebookLM and NotebookLM Plus
- NotebookLM: The Most Useful Free AI Tool of 2025
- NotebookLM now uses Gemini 3, adds new ‘Data Tables’ output
- NotebookLM now lets you listen to a conversation about your sources