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How to govern Gemini

Google's assistant for research, drafting and analysis, and how its access to your data changes the picture.

Google · Reviewed monthly, and when Google announces a capability change · Last reviewed 16 Oct 2026

Governance change Reviewed the release notes from 3 September to 13 October. The Gemini app can now start a coding agent that plans, builds and tests code in the background, and a Customise menu connects more than 40 apps and skills that can act for the person, such as placing orders or making bookings. Skills replace Gems and run automatically on matching prompts. Full changelog ↓

How Gemini is used

We see five common ways businesses use Gemini, and we govern each one on its own terms. If your team uses it differently, that is fine: you describe the use in your own words and Certrak works out the governance from what it actually does.

General productivity assistance

Consequence to people: Low

Drafting, summarising, brainstorming, internal Q&A - day-to-day help with internal work

Internal informationEvery output reviewedInternal use only
  • Review rhythm: Annual review
  • Governance is mostly about: Safe everyday use; Checking what it produces; What it may be given

Document analysis and review

Consequence to people: Low

Reviewing contracts, reports, or technical documents

Internal informationEvery output reviewedInternal use only
  • Review rhythm: Annual review
  • Governance is mostly about: Safe everyday use; Checking what it produces; What it may be given

Marketing content creation

Consequence to people: Low

Drafting marketing copy, social posts, ads, blog content

Internal informationEvery output reviewedCustomers, no decisions about them
  • Review rhythm: Twice-yearly review
  • Governance is mostly about: Safe everyday use; Checking what it produces; A person stays accountable

Internal data analysis and insights

Consequence to people: Low

Analysing business data, surfacing insights, building dashboards

Internal informationEvery output reviewedInternal use only
  • Review rhythm: Annual review
  • Governance is mostly about: Safe everyday use; Checking what it produces; What it may be given

Code generation and review

Consequence to people: Medium

Writing or reviewing code, with a developer in the loop

Internal informationEvery output reviewedInternal use onlyRuns code or scriptsActs on its own
  • Review rhythm: Monthly check-in
  • Governance is mostly about: Safe everyday use; A person stays accountable; What it may be given

Governing Gemini in practice

  1. Name one person who owns Gemini in your business. Governance starts with a name.
  2. Write down what Gemini is used for. Certrak recognises 5 common uses: General productivity assistance, Document analysis and review, Marketing content creation, Internal data analysis and insights and Code generation and review. Yours may differ; write down yours.
  3. Decide what Gemini may and may not be given. Internal business information is in scope, so name what stays out.
  4. Agree that a person reviews every output before it is used, and name who.
  5. Gemini can run code or scripts without a person approving. Record which of these you allow, and who can change that.
  6. Look at this again every month, and sooner on any of these: industry incidents, vendor model updates and autonomy level changes.

What changed, and how Certrak responded

We record every check here, including the ones that changed nothing. A check that found no governance change proves we looked.

  1. Governance change Scheduled review

    Google Antigravity built into the Gemini macOS app

    Google shipped it 13 Oct 2026.

    Reviewed the release notes from 3 September to 13 October. The Gemini app can now start a coding agent that plans, builds and tests code in the background, and a Customise menu connects more than 40 apps and skills that can act for the person, such as placing orders or making bookings. Skills replace Gems and run automatically on matching prompts.

    How Certrak responded: Where Gemini is used for code, it can now write and run code on the person's own machine without each step being reviewed. Owners are asked whether their use includes the built-in coding agent; if it does, the system is treated as running code and the matching controls apply. Connected apps that order or book on a person's behalf are noted for owners to consider.

    Vendor release note →
  2. No governance change Scheduled review

    Gemini release notes

    Google shipped it 28 Aug 2026.

    Reviewed the recent release notes against Gemini's use patterns. No change to what it can do without approval, the data it is expected to touch, or who reviews its output.

    Vendor release note →