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Grok in Google Workspace is a free add-on that puts SpaceXAI’s Grok assistant in a side panel inside Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides. SpaceXAI announced it on July 24, 2026, and Engadget published a hands-on setup guide on Nov. 7. One install from the Google Workspace Marketplace covers all three apps. This guide covers the install steps, the permissions the add-on requests, what it does in each app, and how it compares with Google’s own Gemini panel.
How to install Grok in Google Workspace
SpaceXAI’s Workspace page describes three steps: add the app free from the Google Workspace Marketplace, open it from the Extensions menu, and work beside the file. Engadget’s walkthrough adds the detail, and the Jolt Journal has combined the two accounts below.
- Open Grok in the Google Workspace Marketplace and select Install. The add-on can also be found from inside a Docs, Sheets, or Slides file under Extensions, then Add-ons, then Get add-ons.
- Choose the Google account for the install and select Continue.
- Read and accept the permission screens.
- Open a document, spreadsheet, or presentation, then go to Extensions, then Grok, then Open Grok.
- Select Get Started and sign in with Grok.
SpaceXAI says administrators can deploy the add-on across a whole domain. Its pages do not state eligibility rules, technical requirements, or usage limits, so a work account should check with its administrator before installing.
Permissions to review before installing Grok in Google Workspace
Engadget lists the permission screens a user sees during installation. The table below summarizes them.
| Permission | What Engadget reports |
|---|---|
| Google Docs and Slides | See, edit, create, and delete all documents and presentations |
| Google Sheets | Access only to spreadsheets where the add-on is installed |
| Google Drive | Limited to files used with Grok |
| External connection | Allows Grok to send content to SpaceXAI |
| Gmail and Drive connectors | Optional, and they give Grok wider context |
Engadget’s author declined to connect Gmail and Drive on a main account because the connectors require broad access. Born City, a German technology news site, raises the same concern in its report, saying the add-on needs access to sensitive Gmail and Drive data and that security managers should review the broad permissions closely. That report does not list the specific permission scopes, and it does not establish that the add-on mishandles data. A reasonable approach, and the Jolt Journal’s own, is to install the add-on first without the optional connectors and add them only if a task needs them.
What Grok in Google Workspace does in Docs, Sheets, and Slides
SpaceXAI’s announcement and Engadget’s testing describe these functions for Grok in Google Workspace in each app:
| App | What Grok does | Notes from the reports |
|---|---|---|
| Docs | Turns rough notes into a draft with headings and lists, corrects grammar, and keeps styles consistent | Edits appear as revisions in version history; with connectors on, Grok can pull from recent emails or Drive files |
| Sheets | Answers questions about selected ranges with cell citations, writes formulas, inserts charts, and reruns scenarios | Each edit is a normal change that can be undone |
| Slides | Builds a deck from an outline, adds slides in the current theme, and rewrites titles | Can research from the web or from X; slides remain editable |
The add-on is also available for Word, Excel, PowerPoint, and Outlook, according to SpaceXAI. This guide covers only the Google Workspace version.
How well Grok in Google Workspace works
Engadget’s author found output quality uneven. A Docs draft of installation instructions did not impress, and the author questioned X as a research source for slides. Those are one reviewer’s judgments, not measurements. SpaceXAI’s pages publish no accuracy data, and the Jolt Journal has not tested the add-on. The practical advice is the same as for any AI draft: check every figure, every formula, and every cited cell before sharing a file.
Grok in Google Workspace compared with Gemini
Engadget compares Grok with Google’s Gemini panel, which sits in the same place in the interface. The table below uses the reported differences.
| Item | Grok add-on | Gemini |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free | Included with an eligible Workspace plan for work accounts; Google AI Plus, Pro, or Ultra for personal accounts |
| Apps covered | Docs, Sheets, and Slides | Also Gmail, Drive, and Chat |
| Install | Marketplace add-on | Built in |
Engadget concludes that Grok is the simplest free option for an AI side panel but that people who already use Gemini have little reason to switch. For Gemini subscribers, the Jolt Journal has covered Gemini’s in-chat file editing and the change to Google AI Plus on Nov. 13, and its comparison of ChatGPT, Claude, and Gemini lists plans and prices for the major assistants.
What the reports on Grok in Google Workspace leave open
Neither SpaceXAI’s pages nor Engadget’s guide answers several practical questions about Grok in Google Workspace:
- Who is eligible. SpaceXAI’s pages do not say whether personal and work accounts are treated the same way.
- How to remove it. The reviewed sources do not describe an uninstall process, so anyone who connected Gmail or Drive should check the third-party access settings in their Google account after removing the add-on.
- What data is kept. SpaceXAI’s pages publish no privacy or data-handling details, and Engadget notes only that the add-on can send content to SpaceXAI.
- Usage limits. The pages do not state any, even though the add-on is free.
- Which model runs the work. The reports do not name one.
Until those points are published, the safest use of Grok in Google Workspace is on files that do not contain private or client information.
Editor’s take
Grok in Google Workspace is a low-cost way to try an AI side panel, and the install takes five steps. The decision that matters is the permission screen, because the add-on can edit and delete documents and sends content to SpaceXAI. A cautious first run uses a test document, skips the Gmail and Drive connectors, and checks every output. People already paying for Gemini will find little new, and the reports give no accuracy data that would justify switching.
This is general information, not security advice. SpaceXAI’s pages, Google’s Workspace Marketplace listing, and an organization’s administrator have the final word on installation and data handling.
