Google Chrome testing individual side panel alignment for Gemini, bookmarks, and reading list

Google Chrome is testing a settings update that breaks apart the browser’s global side panel configuration into individual alignment controls for Gemini, Google Search AI Mode, and standard system panels.

The new interface options appeared in the latest Chrome Canary build under the Appearance settings menu (h/t @Leopeva64).

Right now, the stable version of Chrome forces a single layout rule. Users must choose whether all side panels load on the left or the right side of the screen.

The Canary change splits this choice into three distinct dropdown menus. A user can pin the Google Search AI Mode panel to the left side while keeping Gemini and general Chrome panels stacked on the right.

Google is also organizing the layout settings by adding a dedicated “Tab position” dropdown directly into this same Appearance menu. The option currently defaults to “Horizontal.”

This menu reorganization centralizes interface controls that Google previously scattered across right-click context menus or hidden experimental flags. The company added vertical tabs to the browser last month, but managing them required interacting with the tab strip rather than the main settings interface.

Shifting these preferences into the main Appearance pane suggests Google expects users to frequently adjust their layouts depending on which AI assistant they use.

The current implementation in Canary looks functional but basic, using standard drop-down selectors for each feature category.

There is no timeline for when these granular layout controls will migrate to the stable channel for general users. Google frequently runs interface experiments in Canary for weeks before abandoning them or modifying the design.

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