Working with email from the terminal means you don't need to open Gmail or Outlook. nylas email ai analyze does the job.
The nylas email ai analyze command sends an email's content to an AI model for analysis. Pass a custom --prompt to extract sentiment, summarize threads, pull out action items, or answer specific questions about the message.
Quick Start
brew install nylas/nylas-cli/nylas
nylas init
nylas email ai analyze
Syntax
nylas email ai analyze --id MESSAGE_ID [--prompt PROMPT]
Examples
Analyze sentiment of an email:
nylas email ai analyze --id msg_abc123 --prompt "What is the sentiment of this email?"
Summarize a long thread:
nylas email ai analyze --id msg_abc123 --prompt "Summarize this thread in 3 bullet points"
Extract action items:
nylas email ai analyze --id msg_abc123 --prompt "List every action item with owner and deadline"
How It Works
The Nylas CLI abstracts away the differences between Gmail's API, Microsoft Graph, Exchange Web Services, and raw IMAP. You write one command; it works across all providers. This matters for automation — your cron job or CI pipeline doesn't need provider-specific logic.
Common Issues
AI analysis returns empty or generic results
Be specific in your --prompt. Instead of \
Message ID not found
Run nylas email list --json to get valid message IDs. IDs change between providers — don't reuse Gmail IDs for Outlook.
Full docs: nylas email ai analyze reference — all flags, advanced examples, and troubleshooting.
All commands: Nylas CLI Command Reference
Get started: brew install nylas/nylas-cli/nylas — other install methods
