Google is quietly testing a feature that could remove one of the biggest barriers to switching AI assistants: moving your conversations. Early signs in the Gemini interface show an “Import AI Chats” option that would let users bring over entire chat histories from other chatbots while preserving text and media, according to findings shared by Alexey Shabanov of TestingCatalog.
If it launches broadly, this would be a rare play for true data portability in consumer AI. It also suggests Google is targeting users who have built up months of context with rivals like ChatGPT, Claude, or Microsoft’s Copilot, and want a seamless on-ramp to Gemini without starting from zero.
Why Chat Imports Matter for Switching AI Assistants
Large language models are sticky because context compounds. Many power users maintain ongoing threads for research, coding, business planning, and personal knowledge management. Recreating that context by hand is tedious, and that friction keeps people from switching tools even when features improve elsewhere.
Letting people export from one assistant and import to another aligns with broader technology trends. Under long-standing data portability principles, which have been reinforced in regulations like the GDPR, platforms are nudged to make it easier for users to take their data with them. Messaging apps have tested similar ideas: WhatsApp’s encrypted chat backups and cross-device migration lowered the effort required to switch phones without losing history. A comparable move in AI could reshape user churn dynamics overnight.
How the Chat Import Flow in Gemini Could Work
TestingCatalog’s screenshots indicate the import control sits in Gemini’s attachment menu. A prompt reportedly instructs users to download chats from the original service and then add the export file to Gemini for ingestion, with a link to a help page expected once the feature is official. File formats and compatibility are not yet clear. OpenAI, for instance, allows ChatGPT data exports in downloadable archives, and Anthropic and Microsoft offer various data export options for enterprise and consumer accounts.
The real test will be fidelity. If Gemini can ingest long threads, embedded files, images, and references without garbling chronology or context, it would become more than a novelty. Accurate thread reconstruction could enable Gemini to pick up where another assistant left off—summarizing past work, extracting to-do items, or continuing code refactors without a cold start.
Privacy will be central. Conversation archives often contain sensitive material, from client details to API keys. Expect Google to emphasize client-side controls, clear prompts about what is imported, and granular deletion options. Organizations will likely want admin governance and audit trails before allowing employees to import external AI transcripts into managed workspaces.
Gemini Image Quality Jumps to 2K and 4K Download Options
Alongside chat imports, testers have spotted higher-resolution image download options for Gemini, including 2K and 4K presets labeled for sharing and print. Many AI image tools already offer upscaling, but native high-res output streamlines creative workflows for marketing, social, and light print collateral without bouncing between apps.
If coupled with color profiles or layout templates, higher-res exports could make Gemini more attractive to teams that currently rely on a patchwork of image generators and upscalers. And given Google’s existing print integrations through Photos, expanded output options hint at a broader content pipeline—even if direct print ordering from Gemini is not yet in view.
New Likeness Controls Point To Safety Focus
Testers also surfaced a “Likeness” entry that currently routes to Gemini’s video verification tool, which helps users check whether a video appears AI-generated. While details are sparse, the name echoes efforts across the industry to detect and disclose synthetic media that imitates a person’s face or voice. YouTube already offers a likeness reporting tool for creators to flag impersonation and request takedowns. Bringing a dedicated likeness control into Gemini would be consistent with rising expectations around consent and provenance for generative media.
Competitive Stakes for AI Assistants Intensify with Chat Imports
Streamlined migration could be one of the most consequential updates Gemini rolls out this year. ChatGPT’s rapid climb to 100 million monthly users, documented by UBS shortly after launch, underscores how quickly habits form in conversational AI. Breaking platform lock-in with an import button changes the calculus for users who want to try Gemini’s integrations across Search, Android, and Workspace without losing their accumulated knowledge base.
None of these features is widely available yet, and plans can change before release. But the direction is unmistakable: lower the switching cost, raise creative quality, and shore up safety controls. If Google executes well on all three, Gemini will have a far easier time winning converts from entrenched rivals.
