Google Workspace Updates August 2025: The most important new features on security, AI & collaboration

In August 2025, Google announced a series of innovations for Google Workspace published. We have selected important innovations and present them in our short & compact webinar. The topics range from more security in Google Drive and new features in Google Meet and Voice to powerful AI integrations such as Gemini and NotebookLM.

In this article, we summarize the most important highlights and show why they are crucial for companies.

Watch the recorded webinar:

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1. more overview and security in Google Drive

Marking external documents
‍Fromnow on, users can immediately see whether a file is an internal or external document. Especially in organizations with many shared files, this provides transparency and helps to avoid errors when handling confidential information.

Protection against data theft and spam attacks
Admins can also granularly control whether documents can be downloaded, copied or shared. This makes unwanted theft or leakage of data more difficult. The marking also offers effective protection against new forms of spam, in which external documents appear as internal documents.

2. improvements in Google Voice

Conference calls now integrated
Google Voice, the telephony solution from Google, now also enables conference calls. Users can directly add other participants to an ongoing call - without additional tools.

Use via browser and app
Google Voice can be used via the browser, on Android and iOS, making it even more flexible for companies looking for an integrated telephony solution.

3. granular authorizations for add-ons

Precise data sharing for third-party apps
An important step forward for security: add-ons no longer have to be given blanket access to all data. Instead, admins can now determine which information an app is allowed to access.

More control for admins
For example, it is possible to specify that an application may only use calendar data, but not Gmail or Drive. This increases control and security in the Workspace ecosystem.

4th Google AppSheet with AI support

Automated data capture from photos and receipts
Google AppSheet, the no-code platform within Workspace, is getting a major upgrade: content from photos or scanned documents - such as invoices or receipts - is automatically recognized and transferred to databases or sheets.

Possible application: Expense recording
This is particularly practical for expense reports, inventory management or accounting processes. Companies can use it to reduce paperwork and automate processes.

5. new functions in Google Meet

External video sources as a presentation option
External video sources can now also be shared in Google Meet. This opens up new scenarios for live demos, training courses or creative workshops. Whether a graphics tablet, second camera or production software: Meet is becoming more versatile and flexible for anyone who wants to go beyond pure screen sharing. It offers more flexibility for training and creative collaboration.

6. security through the dual control principle for admins

Granular configuration for critical changes
The extended dual control principle ensures that critical changes only take effect after approval by a second admin. Useful when working with external IT service providers. Especially when companies work with external IT partners, this prevents unwanted configurations and strengthens IT security.

7. smart appointment booking directly in Gmail

Insert schedules from Google Calendar
The familiar schedule function from Google Calendar can now be used directly in Gmail to offer time slots. This means that 30 or 60-minute slots can be inserted into an email with a click, which simplifies scheduling and makes the exchange more professional.

8. automatic document classification

New labels for differentiated file categorization
The automatic classification of documents has been expanded: admins can train up to five additional labels and thus categorize documents even more precisely. This is a clear compliance advantage for enterprise customers. Especially for companies with high data protection and compliance requirements, this is an important update for clearly labeling confidential data.

9 Gemini & NotebookLM - AI in the workspace

Video summaries and interactive mind maps in NotebookLM
NotebookLM has been greatly expanded: In addition to audio summaries, video overviews can now also be created. In addition, there are interactive mind maps that visually prepare content from sources and make it easy to navigate.

AI summaries and action items in Google Meet
Gemini automatically creates summaries and to-dos in meetings. Currently only in English, but other languages - including German - have been announced.

Analyze documents in Google Drive.
Several files can now be analyzed and compared simultaneously in the Gemini sidebar of Google Drive. A practical example is the comparison of job applications with a job description, which is clearly presented in tabular form.

10 Shared responsibility - cloud security as teamwork

Google's protection mechanisms vs. corporate responsibility
Google provides the platform and many security functions. However, companies are responsible for configuring and using them correctly. Why is the correct configuration of data security so important: The model of shared responsibility model model means that security in the cloud is an interplay between provider and user. The new granular functions help to minimize risks - but they must be used actively.

Conclusion: more safety, more efficiency, more AI

The updates from August 2025 clearly show where the journey is heading:
More security thanks to finely tuned access rights and admin tools.

• More efficiency through smart features in Gmail, Meet and Voice.
• More intelligence thanks to AI integrations such as Gemini and AppSheet.
• Companies that actively use these functions create a secure and productive working environment and get the most out of Google Workspace.

Would you like to introduce the new features or optimize existing settings? We support you with workshops, security audits and enablement sessions.