Anthropic is pushing Claude further into workplace software, bringing its AI assistant directly into Google Docs, Sheets and Slides as the company expands its efforts to make Claude a more deeply embedded tool for businesses and developers.
The company said Tuesday that a new public beta add-on will allow paid Claude subscribers to use the assistant from a sidebar inside Google Workspace files. Anthropic is also rolling out beta connectors that let users create and modify Google files from within Claude’s chat interface.
The Workspace integration lets Claude reference selected text, cells or slides and make changes directly to an open file. In Google Docs, Claude can make minor edits while preserving formatting or suggest larger rewrites as reviewable changes that users can accept or reject.
In Google Sheets, Claude can write formulas, generate pivot tables, build native charts and create new tabs. Users can also send data into Python for tasks such as cleaning or joining datasets before returning the results to the spreadsheet.
The Slides integration is designed to generate new slides that match the style of an existing presentation. Claude can also check layouts for problems including overlapping elements, text extending beyond the slide and readability issues.
Users can choose between a mode that requires approval before Claude makes changes and a setting that allows the assistant to execute edits automatically.
The Workspace sidebar uses the same Claude models and connected tools available through a user’s account, including third-party data sources and saved workflows. For enterprise customers, the integration is subject to existing administrative controls, including the Compliance API, customer-managed encryption keys and OpenTelemetry audit exports.
The company is separately offering Docs, Sheets and Slides connectors in beta for users who want to begin work from Claude’s chat interface. Access to linked Google files is governed by the user’s existing Google sharing permissions.
The add-on is available through the Google Workspace Marketplace, while administrators can deploy it through the Google Admin console. Team and Enterprise customers need an owner or primary owner to enable the connectors.
The Workspace rollout comes as Anthropic broadens its push into organizations that could build their own products and workflows around Claude.
The company is expanding its Claude for Startups program to give qualifying startups a free year of Claude Team, with as many as five premium seats, along with $1,000 in API credits, TechCrunch reported.
The program also gives startups access to Claude Marketplace, where companies can build plug-ins for Claude, as well as virtual office hours with Anthropic’s Applied AI team. Startups qualify if they were founded within the past five years or have received funding within the past two years.
Photo: Shutterstock