Gmail classify

Gmail AI Classifier

Intelligent email classification using AI reasoning for smart inbox organization.

Overview

Unlike pattern-based filtering, AI classification analyzes email content, sender context, and user behavior to make intelligent categorization decisions.

Usage

Syntax: /gmail-classify [days]

Examples:

/gmail-classify           # Classify last 7 days
/gmail-classify 30        # Classify last 30 days
/gmail-classify --dry-run # Preview without applying

Classification Categories

Category	Indicators	Label
Newsletter	Substack, Mailchimp, "unsubscribe" link	Newsletters
Shopping	Order confirmation, shipping, tracking	Shopping
Work	Company domain, professional tone	Work
Personal	Personal contacts, casual tone	Personal
Notifications	GitHub, Slack, calendar alerts	Notifications
Receipts	Invoice, payment, receipt keywords	Finance/Receipts
Promotions	Discount, sale, marketing language	Promotions

Classification Workflow

Step 1: Fetch Emails

gog gmail search 'newer_than:${DAYS}d -label:classified' --json

Exclude already-classified emails to avoid re-processing.

Step 2: Analyze Each Email

For each email, analyze:

1. Sender Analysis

   • Domain reputation (newsletter service? company?)
   • Sender name format (person vs system)
   • Reply-to address

2. Subject Analysis

   • Keywords (order, invoice, newsletter, etc.)
   • Format (numbered list? FW:? RE:?)
   • Tone (formal, casual, marketing)

3. Content Indicators

   • Unsubscribe link presence
   • Tracking numbers
   • Financial amounts
   • Personal greetings

Step 3: Classify with Confidence

Assign category with confidence level:

Confidence	Threshold	Action
High (90%+)	Strong signals	Auto-apply label
Medium (70-89%)	Mixed signals	Apply with note
Low (<70%)	Unclear	Skip, flag for review

Step 4: Apply Labels

For high-confidence classifications:

# Ensure label exists
gog gmail labels list --json
gog gmail labels create "CategoryName"

# Apply label
gog gmail modify <message-id> --add-label <label-id>

Step 5: Report Results

## Classification Report

**Period**: Last 7 days
**Emails Analyzed**: 142
**Classifications Made**: 128
**Skipped (low confidence)**: 14

### Summary by Category

| Category | Count | % of Total |
|----------|-------|------------|
| Newsletters | 45 | 35% |
| Notifications | 32 | 25% |
| Shopping | 18 | 14% |
| Work | 15 | 12% |
| Personal | 12 | 9% |
| Receipts | 6 | 5% |

### High-Confidence Classifications (Auto-labeled)
- 98 emails across all categories

### Low-Confidence (Manual Review Needed)
1. "Meeting notes from John" - Work or Personal?
2. "Your weekly summary" - Newsletter or Notification?
...

### Suggested Filters

Based on this analysis, create permanent filters:
1. `/gmail-filter create @substack.com Newsletters --archive`
2. `/gmail-filter create @github.com Notifications`

Classification Signals

Newsletter Signals

• Sender: newsletter@, digest@, weekly@
• Domains: substack.com, mailchimp.com, beehiiv.com
• Content: "unsubscribe", "view in browser"
• Subject: "Weekly", "Digest", "Newsletter"

Shopping Signals

• Subject: "order", "shipped", "delivered", "tracking"
• Sender: orders@, shipping@, noreply@
• Content: Order numbers, tracking links

Work Signals

• Sender: Company domain match
• Content: Project names, professional terminology
• CC: Multiple company addresses

Personal Signals

• Sender: In contacts, personal domain
• Content: Casual language, personal topics
• No marketing footers

Notification Signals

• Sender: notifications@, alerts@, noreply@
• Subject: [GitHub], [Slack], calendar patterns
• Content: Action buttons, status updates

Receipt Signals

• Subject: "receipt", "invoice", "payment"
• Content: Dollar amounts, transaction IDs
• Sender: billing@, receipts@

Dry Run Mode

Preview classifications without applying:

/gmail-classify --dry-run

Shows what would be classified without making changes.

Error Handling

• No emails found: Suggest widening date range
• Label creation fails: Check permissions
• API rate limit: Pause and resume
• Classification uncertain: Flag for user review

See Also

• references/categories.md - Detailed category definitions
• /gmail-analyze - Pattern analysis (faster, simpler)
• /gmail-filter - Create permanent rules from classifications