Key takeaways
- Google offers reach that is hard to match. The commercial terms for publishers have not been made public.
- A book in Gemini and a business around your book are different things. You may want both.
- Your own app is only worth it if you add something, such as practice, reports or support, and use the data.
On 29 October 2026, Google announced hundreds of free textbooks in Gemini Notebook, from providers including OpenStax, Open Textbook Library and S Chand Publishing. Students get answers based on the book, along with quizzes and flashcards. S Chand has also put Google Lens into more than 300 titles. Earlier this year, Google added free JEE Main mock tests to Gemini.
So at your next board meeting, someone will ask: why are we building anything? Why not just give our books to Google? It is a fair question, and sometimes the answer is that you should.
What each option gives you
| Textbooks in Gemini Notebook | Your own platform | |
|---|---|---|
| Reach | Very large, and Google brings the students | You bring them, through your book and your dealers |
| Cost to the student | Free, as announced | You set the price and the bundles |
| Answers, quizzes, flashcards | Yes, based on the textbook | Yes, based on your book |
| Whose brand and app | Google's | Yours |
| Reader's details | Not stated in the announcement | You hold them |
| Report on what readers get wrong | Not stated in the announcement | Yes, by topic and by student |
| Terms for the publisher | Not disclosed | A plan you can read and compare |
| Setup work | Depends on the deal | Yours: rights, review, marketing |
Seven questions to ask Google
S Chand's terms have not been made public, so nobody outside can say what a publisher gives up. Get these answers in writing:
- How are we paid, and how is usage counted?
- Who holds the reader's details? Can we see who is using our book?
- Will we get reports on what readers ask and get wrong?
- How is our brand shown? Can a reader buy from us from inside Gemini?
- Is our content used to train models? Can that be ruled out in writing?
- How long is the deal, and can we take a title back?
- Does the deal stop us from selling the same title elsewhere?
Also ask your lawyer whether your author contracts allow this at all. Section 18 of the Copyright Act limits an assignment to media in use at the time, unless it says otherwise. Note too that several publishers and authors have sued Google over Gemini, so a deal and a dispute can exist side by side in this market.
Which option suits which book?
This is our judgment, and we sell the second option. Weigh it with that in mind.
| Your title | Lean towards | Why |
|---|---|---|
| Books readers can already get free | Gemini | Little to lose, and more reach |
| An older title that no longer sells | Gemini, if the terms are fair | Some income or reach from a book earning little |
| Exam guides with your own question bank | Your own app | Your tests and reports are the product |
| Medical books | Your own app first | A named reviewer, and your name on the content |
| School books sold through schools | Your own, with each school | Teacher tools, and the school's route for children's data |
| Titles where rights are unclear | Neither, yet | Fix the contract first |
When your own app is a bad idea
We lose nothing by saying this: an app with only your PDFs in it is not worth building. Readers already have a free AI tool for quick answers, and in rural India 76% of teens who could use a smartphone used it for social media in the past week, against 57% for education. Your app has to earn its place on that phone.
Keeping readers is the hard part for everyone. A two-year Khanmigo trial in 18 US schools found small gains of 0.06 to 0.08 SD per school year, with limited student use as the apparent constraint. So plan for a reason to return: a test on a date, a report, a teacher who assigns it.
What would make your own app worth it
Practice tied to your book. Mock tests on a date, with reports by topic. A companion with limits. Unrestricted GPT-4 lowered later exam scores by 17% in one school trial, and guardrails removed the harm without adding a gain. So a tool that gives hints from your book, and declines off-topic requests, is a safer start. Data that reaches your editors. If most readers miss the same question, you know which paragraph to fix in the next edition.
Google's own research points the same way. In its 60-student study on one chapter, an AI-augmented textbook scored 4.7 against 4.0 out of 6 on follow-up recall, compared with a PDF reader. Those students also studied longer, and the features were not tested separately. Even so, it suggests that a PDF alone is not where the value lies.
Next, read how AI is changing book publishing in India or our step-by-step guide to digitizing textbooks.
See how Vacademy works for publishers
Frequently asked questions
What did Google announce about textbooks in Gemini Notebook?
On 29 October 2026, Google announced hundreds of free textbooks in Gemini Notebook, from providers including OpenStax, Open Textbook Library and S Chand Publishing. Students can get answers based on the book, plus quizzes and flashcards.
Should my publishing house join Gemini Notebook?
It depends on the terms and on your type of book. It may suit titles that need reach, or that your readers can already get free. Be more careful with your paid titles. Ask Google the questions in this guide, and ask your lawyer about your author contracts.
What does S Chand get from Google?
The commercial terms have not been made public, so we do not know. That is why we suggest asking Google directly about payment, data, branding and the length of the deal.
Can a publisher be on Gemini and also have its own app?
Possibly. You could put some titles in Gemini to reach new readers, and keep tests, reports and support in your own app. Check whether Google's terms allow this, and whether your contracts cover both.
Does a publisher really need its own app?
Not always. If you do not plan to add practice, reports or support, an app gives readers little reason to open it. Your own app makes sense when you will use the reader data and add something a free tool does not.
Vacademy sells a platform for publishers, so please check our claims against the sources linked above. Facts are as of 4 November 2026. This is general information, not legal advice. No customer results are quoted.