A flat vector illustration showing four connected hexagonal nodes in white against a dark gray background. Each node contains a simple icon: an envelope for Gmail, a robot face for ChatGPT, the Slack hash symbol, and the Make.com logo. Bright orange lines connect the nodes in a clockwise flow. Small animated dots in orange move along the connection lines, suggesting data flow.

Build a Simple Email Summary System with Make.com, Gmail, ChatGPT and Slack

Time spent reading emails holds back business growth. A simple Make.com automation can cut that time down by linking Gmail, ChatGPT, and Slack to give you clear summaries of important messages.

The Core Parts

This system needs four tools working together:

  • Make.com handles the automation flow
  • Gmail feeds in your emails
  • ChatGPT builds summaries
  • Slack shows you the results

Setting Up Gmail in Make.com

Start with the Gmail connection:

  • Add a Gmail trigger module
  • Pick Watch Emails as your trigger
  • Set up filters for the emails you want to summarize
  • Test the connection to make sure emails flow through

Adding ChatGPT to the Mix

Next, bind ChatGPT to your workflow:

  • Add the OpenAI module after Gmail
  • Put in your API key
  • Build a prompt that tells ChatGPT how to summarize emails
  • Test it with a sample email to check the summary quality

Sample Prompt for ChatGPT

Here’s a prompt that works well:

Summarize this email in 3 short bullet points. Focus on action items and key information. Keep each bullet under 15 words.

Link to Slack

The last step puts summaries where you’ll see them:

  • Add the Slack Send a Message module
  • Pick your channel
  • Format the message to show:
    • Email subject
    • Sender
    • The ChatGPT summary
    • A link to the full email

Testing the System

Before turning it loose on your inbox:

  • Send yourself a test email
  • Watch it flow through Make.com
  • Check the summary in Slack
  • Adjust the prompt if needed

Making It Better

Once it’s running, you can grow the system:

  • Add filters for specific senders or subjects
  • Build custom summary formats for different email types
  • Set up separate Slack channels for different email groups
  • Add more AI processing steps

Common Problems and Fixes

Watch for these issues:

  • API rate limits – Space out your requests
  • Long emails – Set a max token count
  • Missing context – Add more email metadata to the prompt
  • Slack formatting – Test message layouts

System Benefits

This automation:

  • Cuts email reading time
  • Keeps important info visible
  • Works while you focus on other tasks
  • Grows with your needs

Next Steps

Start small:

  1. Set it up for one email type
  2. Test for a week
  3. Add more email groups
  4. Shape the summaries

For more ways to build better business systems with AI, check out our guide on Low Code No Code Plus AI.

If you want this simple system, go to this page and copy the contents. Then open a new scenario and paste it.

Want to learn more about working with AI? See how to build clear FAQs with ChatGPT.

Ready to save time on email? Start building your summary system now.