Google is rolling out significant updates to its AI-driven model, NotebookLM, that promise to enhance its usability. These changes, particularly to the Audio Overview feature, aim to make it more intuitive, customizable, and practical for users. As AI-generated content continues to evolve, this new feature set provides a more refined way for people to interact with and consume information.

Smarter AI Audio Overviews Get a Boost

A few weeks ago, I highlighted how NotebookLM’s Audio Overview feature could generate conversations between two AI hosts that sounded surprisingly human. The tool, designed to create audio summaries of notebooks, was impressive but had some limitations, especially in terms of customization. Users couldn’t control what part of the content the AI summarized, which sometimes led to overgeneralized summaries.

This week, Google is fixing that by adding a customization option to Audio Overviews. Now, users can specify what sections or topics within their uploaded content they want summarized. Previously, if you uploaded a book or a long document, the AI would try to summarize everything, which wasn’t always efficient. Now, you can direct it to focus on a specific topic, making the summaries much more relevant and targeted.

Real-World Example: Customizing Content

To test out this new feature, I uploaded my book Brainfluence, which dives into behavioral science and neuroscience for marketing strategies. Rather than getting a general overview, I used the customization tool to instruct NotebookLM to focus on the section about pricing psychology. The result? A detailed 24-minute summary exclusively discussing pricing strategies—much more focused than before.

One interesting quirk: The AI interpreted the content as though it were explaining pricing strategies to consumers, not marketers. While it’s a valid approach, my book is intended for marketers, not the general public. Nonetheless, the ability to customize the focus area makes this feature extremely useful for zeroing in on key points.

I also experimented by asking the AI to generate a shorter, podcast-style overview, where the hosts acted like seasoned marketing experts sharing pricing tips. This produced an eight-minute discussion, styled like a podcast episode, with two AI hosts who seemed to know their stuff. Despite requesting a five-minute summary, the AI still stretched it to eight minutes, showing there’s some flexibility (or randomness) in how long the audio ends up being.

Background Listening for Multitasking

Google has also added a handy background listening feature, letting users play Audio Overviews while performing other tasks within NotebookLM. This is perfect for those who like to multitask—whether you’re working on other parts of your notebook or just need to absorb information passively.

Expanding Use Cases for Audio Overviews

These new customization tools open up a range of possibilities for how you can use NotebookLM’s Audio Overviews. Some ideas include:

• Digesting Lengthy Content: Summarize books, research papers, or YouTube videos with a focus on particular topics, making it easier to get the information you really need.
• Education and Training: Break down complex materials into more manageable audio segments. For example, you could turn a textbook into a series of targeted overviews, each focused on different chapters or key points.
• News Summaries: Keep up with industry news by turning articles into concise audio recaps.
• Data Summarization: Like large AI models such as ChatGPT, NotebookLM can analyze data or research and turn it into useful audio that’s easy to digest.
• Podcast Creation: The voices in the Audio Overviews are already good enough to mimic podcast hosts. While not quite at human level yet, they’re decent enough to create basic podcast-style audio summaries.

NotebookLM for Business: New Paid Features on the Horizon

Alongside these updates, Google has announced NotebookLM for Business, a forthcoming paid version of the tool geared toward organizations like businesses and universities. This version will offer additional features, with a strong emphasis on data privacy and security—key concerns for companies handling sensitive information. Applications are now open for businesses to join the pilot program, which will offer early access, specialized training, and dedicated support.

Final Thoughts: What’s Next for NotebookLM?

NotebookLM is evolving quickly, and these updates show that Google is investing heavily in the tool. By allowing users to customize Audio Overviews, Google has made this feature much more practical for a variety of use cases—from education to business applications. While there are still some quirks, like variability in summary lengths, the tool’s growth potential is clear.

With NotebookLM for Business on the horizon, and the continued refinement of the Audio Overview features, it’s exciting to see where this technology is headed. Whether you’re using it to digest books, summarize research, or even create podcasts, NotebookLM is proving itself to be a powerful tool in the world of AI-driven content creation.