Marketing and AI weekly roundup: Meta terms paused, Gemini in Gmail
This is the marketing and AI weekly roundup for 7 to 12 November 2026. The two biggest stories: Meta paused the new commercial terms that were due on 20 November, and Google opened Gemini summaries and "Help me write" in Gmail to all Google Workspace users.
Will Meta's new commercial terms start on 20 November?
No. Meta posted a notice in its Business Help Center that the updates to its Commercial Terms, Product Catalog Terms, Self-Serve Ad Terms and Ad Creative Generative AI Terms will not take effect on November 20, 2026. The company told Nieman Lab on 5 November that its existing terms remain in effect and that it will share an update later. It gave no new date. The paused terms would have let Meta scrape the websites of Meta Business account holders; we covered them in Meta's new commercial terms.
Why it matters: You don't need to change robots.txt or your contracts before 20 November. Keep the checklist you prepared, though, because Meta has paused the terms, not withdrawn them.
What did Google add to Gmail for businesses?
On 10 November Google started opening two Gemini features in Gmail: summaries of long threads (AI Overview) and "Help me write", which drafts an email from a short prompt. According to the Google Workspace Updates blog, both are available to all Workspace customers and to personal accounts for users aged 18 and over, and both are on by default. Admins can turn them off, and they can take up to 15 days to appear. Google did not say which languages are supported.
Why it matters: If your sales or support team writes to customers from Gmail, decide now whether to leave these features on, and have someone read every AI-drafted email before it goes out.
How do you share a Google Sheets dashboard without sharing the file?
On 11 November Google said a Sheets canvas can now be published as a standalone link. A canvas uses Gemini to turn spreadsheet data into a small app such as a dashboard, a kanban board or a calendar. People who open the published link get read-only access to the canvas without seeing the source spreadsheet, and you can set it to republish when the data changes. It works on the web only, in Business Standard and Plus and Enterprise plans, and reaches Scheduled Release domains from 2 December.
Why it matters: You can send a client or partner a live campaign or sales dashboard without exposing the cost columns or customer data behind it.
What is the "Wait until" step in Workspace Studio?
Google added a "Wait until" step to Workspace Studio, rolling out from 9 November. It pauses an automated flow and resumes it at a set date and time, or after a set duration of up to 14 days, according to Google's announcement. It is available in Business Starter, Standard and Plus and in Enterprise plans.
Why it matters: You can build a simple automatic follow-up without another tool, such as a reminder when a customer hasn't answered a quote after 3 days.
When did the Google November 2026 core update start?
It started on 10 November, applies to all countries and languages, and may take up to two weeks to roll out, according to the Google Search Status Dashboard. Our article on the Google November 2026 core update lists what to check during the rollout.
Why it matters: Don't judge ranking changes until the rollout ends, then compare against a period of the same length.
What are the terms of round 5 of Egypt's Creativa incubation program?
Creativa Innovation Hubs launched round 5 of the Creativa Incubation Program (CIP) on 9 November with total funding of EGP 10.8 million, according to Egypt's Ministry of Communications and Information Technology. Each startup gets EGP 360,000 over a one-year program: EGP 180,000 in cash for product development and EGP 180,000 in training, mentoring and consulting. Startups must be three years old or younger, at pre-seed stage, with a working MVP and a business plan. The announcement gives no closing date.
Why it matters: E-commerce, health and education technology are among the priority sectors, so a young tech startup in those areas should apply early.
What did we publish this week?
Questions
Has Meta cancelled its new commercial terms?
No. Meta paused them without a new date, and its existing terms remain in effect until it shares an update.
Can a company turn off Gemini in Gmail?
Yes. A Google Workspace admin can disable Gemini features in Gmail, and each user can turn them off too.
Who can apply to round 5 of Egypt's Creativa program?
Tech startups three years old or younger, at pre-seed stage, with a working MVP and a business plan.