Google Kills Beloved Gmail Features Starting January 2027, but Free AI Tools Are on the Way
The 'Send As' feature for third-party addresses, Gmailify, and POP fetching are being retired, while all users get advanced AI tools.
The 'Send As' feature for third-party addresses, Gmailify, and POP fetching are being retired, while all users get advanced AI tools.
Gmail users, the popular email service, need to prepare for major changes starting in early 2027. Google has officially confirmed that from January 2027, it will completely discontinue support for the "Send As" feature for third-party addresses, affecting millions of users worldwide, including those in Croatia.
This decision impacts addresses like @yahoo.com and @outlook.com, which could previously be configured as senders within Gmail's interface. The company cites the extremely high and unpredictable cost of maintaining this system as the reason for this action.
The "Send As" feature allowed users to send messages from another email address that had been previously verified, selected directly in the "From" field when composing an email. Starting in early 2027, this functionality will no longer be available on desktop or mobile apps.
Additionally, Google is completely removing the ability to link external accounts through the Gmailify service, and support for fetching mail via the outdated POP protocol will also be discontinued. Google assures that all previously linked messages and automatic forwarding will remain in the inbox. As a replacement, users are advised to use the official apps from original service providers or traditional email clients on their computers.
It's important to note that this restriction does not affect other Gmail addresses or accounts within Google Workspace, for them, the sending option remains available.
Despite the discontinuation of the mentioned options, Google is introducing advanced AI-based tools into the free Gmail package that were previously mostly paid. The first is "Help Me Write," a tool that composes complete message drafts based on a short input, adapting the response to the user's personal writing style. The second is "AI Overviews," a feature that automatically summarizes long email threads at the very beginning of the conversation, allowing users to grasp the essence of messages in seconds and save time.
Nick Fox announced on August 6, 2026, on Twitter that major updates are coming to Ask Maps. The feature is expanding to more than 150 English-language markets and brings several novelties: food ordering with partners like Square and Toast, with Uber Eats coming soon; personal intelligence with Gmail integration; real-time public transit information; and the ability to conversationally suggest tips and edits.
On the same day, Google also announced the open-sourcing of the WeatherNext 2 AI model, developed in collaboration between Google DeepMind and Google Research. The model can predict tropical cyclones with an additional day of lead time, and results published in the journal Nature show it brings roughly a decade of progress in weather forecasting in one leap.
All these announcements come ahead of the Made by Google event, which takes place on August 12, 2026, at 6:00 PM Eastern Time. Google tweeted: "The lineup is impressive, and we're not just talking about new Google Pixel devices. Come see how it all comes together at #MadeByGoogle."
