On May 20, the day of the Google I/O 2025 conference, beta versions of native NotebookLM mobile apps for iOS and Android will debut, replacing the existing web app. They will integrate the AI service with the system functions of mobile devices. The apps will support full offline access to previously generated audio reviews, which will allow you to listen to materials without an Internet connection. Thus, NotebookLM will become a truly mobile AI tool for studying, analyzing and creating personalized content on the go.
Image source: Google
NotebookLM is an AI-powered research tool that was released in 2023 as a PWA. Despite its broad functionality, using it through a browser had its limitations: it couldn’t work when the internet connection was lost and there was no full-fledged background audio playback. New mobile apps are designed to address both of these shortcomings.
The service is often described as a new-generation “smart notepad”: users can upload PDFs, articles, links to publicly available YouTube videos, plain text, Google Docs, Google Slides, audio files, and other sources of information. AI analyzes the materials, highlights key points, answers thematic questions, and can also automatically convert the content into a short audio review format – a kind of podcast created based on the content of the uploaded data.
NotebookLM uses the latest Gemini family of AI models. All responses are linked to sources, allowing you to see exactly what information the AI has extracted from the uploaded materials. This level of reliability makes the service an indispensable assistant for students, analysts, researchers, and anyone who needs accurate and verifiable factual material.
The functionality includes a full offline mode. You can download AI-generated audio reviews in advance and listen to them without an internet connection. Thanks to background playback, the audio continues playing even if the user switches to another app or locks the screen.
Judging by the screenshots from Google Play Market, the application interface will contain a number of additional functions, some of which will be familiar to users of the web version:
- Home screen. Displays the Recent, Shared, Title, and Downloaded tabs, as well as a scrollable list of notebooks. Each notebook has a large button to launch the Audio Overview.
- Audio player: This is a full-screen mode that not only shows an animated waveform, but also allows you to “join the podcast” to ask the AI questions or get clarification.
- Create a new notebook. The large floating action button at the bottom of the screen lets you create a new notebook. Just tap it to upload documents, paste text, add URLs — or use the system sharing feature to import content from other apps directly into NotebookLM.
- Notebook View Mode: When you open a notebook, a persistent toolbar appears at the bottom of the screen, providing quick access to Sources (viewing downloaded materials), Chat (interacting with the AI on the contents of the notebook), and Studio (settings and usage statistics).
The screenshots also show how the app looks on tablets: in split-screen mode, the AI chat is located next to the list of sources – just like when working on a laptop.
Native apps provide deeper integration with iOS and Android systems and access to system features such as push notifications. Users will be able to access the new app by following these steps: