Google just rolled out a major upgrade to its AI-powered workspace, and the new Google NotebookLM Deep Research feature is easily the biggest highlight. The update transforms NotebookLM into a more powerful research assistant capable of planning, sourcing, and synthesizing detailed insights with far less manual effort.

Deep Research: Your AI research partner

The new Google NotebookLM Deep Research tool can now take a single question, generate a structured research plan, and browse websites on your behalf. Instead of juggling tabs and tracking sources yourself, Deep Research autonomously gathers information and compiles a source-backed report you can drop directly into your notebook.

Google says the tool functions like a personal researcher—one that analyzes documents, recommends relevant papers, and surfaces useful webpages while you stay focused on your workflow. And because the Google NotebookLM Deep Research engine runs in the background, you’re free to continue adding sources or refining your notes as it works.

Deep or fast? You choose your research style

Accessing the new features is simple. When searching in the source panel, select “Web” as your source. Google NotebookLM Deep Research then lets you choose:

• Deep Research – for a comprehensive briefing, detailed analysis, and long-form synthesis
• Fast Research – for quick answers or high-level insights without the wait

This flexibility ensures users get both speed and depth depending on their task.

NotebookLM now supports more file types

Alongside the Google NotebookLM Deep Research upgrade, Google is expanding supported file formats. You can now upload:

• Google Sheets
• Google Drive files via URLs
• PDFs hosted in Google Drive
• Microsoft Word documents

This expansion makes it easier to summarize spreadsheets, pull insights from Drive-hosted PDFs, and consolidate multiple sources in one place—all without leaving NotebookLM.

Part of Google’s growing AI productivity ecosystem

Google NotebookLM Deep Research is the latest in a series of enhancements since NotebookLM launched in late 2023. Earlier updates introduced Audio Overviews (AI-generated podcast summaries), Video Overviews (visual summaries of dense content), and full mobile apps for Android and iOS.

This new rollout brings NotebookLM much closer to a full-scale research companion—one that blends automated analysis with flexible personal workflows.

Google says the entire set of updates, including the Google NotebookLM Deep Research tool, will be available to all users within a week.