Gmail will help you write your emails now: How to access Google’s new AI tool

Google's Help Me Write is now available in Gmail for Android and iOS for enrolled testers in the Workspace Labs program.

Also: 5 ways to explore the use of generative AI at work

To sign up, go to Labs.WithGoogle.com and click on Join Waitlist under Google Workspace. You'll be taken to a page where you can log in using your Gmail account. If there's no waitlist (and there wasn't for me), you'll be able to jump right into using Gmail's Help Me Write on your mobile app.

If you've already signed up for Workspace Labs, log into Gmail with the email associated with that account.

As Help Me Write is now available for Gmail mobile users in Android and iOS, you have to open your mobile app and start a new message. 

There should be a button at the bottom right of the screen that says ‘Help Me Write'. Tap on it to open the generative AI tool that will generate your email. 

At this point, enter the prompt for what you want your email to convey. It doesn't have to be a long paragraph but it does need to contain any pertinent information that should be included in the email. If you have a date, dollar amount, names, address, a company name —  it's a good idea to include this information for the AI bot. 

Also: How to write better AI prompts

Here are some prompt examples to give to Google's Help Me Write Gmail assistant:

• An invitation for a dinosaur-themed 6th birthday party
• A complaint to a dock manager about freight backlog
• Request help from customer service answering how you can access your locked account
• Request to return an item you purchased

You can provide feedback on whether the generated response met your needs or not by giving it a thumbs up or down. If you're not happy with the response, you can also regenerate it by tapping on the circular arrow on the screen. 

Otherwise, you can move on to the next step.

Gmail will create an email for you that you can format to make it more formal or informal, more elaborate or shorter, or add and rewrite anything you want. 

Once you're done editing your email and are ready to send, make sure you have a destination email address in the ‘To' field and a subject line, as Help Me Write won't populate the subject.