Google is enhancing its widely used search engine by integrating the next generation of its artificial intelligence technology, aiming to deliver instant expertise in response to growing competition from smaller rivals. On Wednesday, the company unveiled plans to incorporate its Gemini 2.0 AI model into the search engine, enabling it to tackle more sophisticated queries, such as those involving computer coding and mathematics.
Expanded AI Overviews
Since May of last year, Google has been displaying AI-generated summaries above the traditional web links that have long served as a critical source of traffic for online publishers. Now, the company is broadening access to these AI overviews in the U.S., making them available to teenage users without requiring a unique sign-in process.
Introduction of “AI Mode”
In what could be one of the most significant updates to its search interface since founders Larry Page and Sergey Brin launched the company in the late 1990s, Google will introduce an “AI mode” option. This will be rolled out gradually and increase the use of AI summaries, making responses more conversational. However, Google cautions that this mode may occasionally produce inaccurate information, a phenomenon the tech industry calls “hallucinations.”
Google’s product vice president, Robby Stein, addressed these risks in a blog post, stating, “As with any early-stage AI product, we won’t always get it right.” He noted that some responses may unintentionally adopt a persona or reflect a specific viewpoint. Google is implementing stricter safeguards to minimize errors, particularly in sensitive areas like health and finance.
Initially, “AI mode” will be available only within Google’s experimental Labs section and limited to subscribers of its $20-per-month Google One AI Premium service. This cautious approach allows for further refinement before a wider release, a strategy-driven partly by competition from AI-powered search engines like ChatGPT and Perplexity.
Publisher Concerns
Publishers are getting nervous as AI overs takes over, worried that users will click less on their site if they can get all the info in the search results. These traffic referrals are a publisher’s lifeblood; they drive the clicks that generate digital ad revenue.
Google says AI overviews increase engagement because they spark curiosity, leading to more searches and clicks to external sites. But publishers aren’t convinced, worried that Google – already the ad giant with over $260 billion in annual revenue – will be the one that benefits most from this shift.
Legal and Regulatory Challenges
AI is coming to search under Google under the microscope. Last year, a general judge ruled Google’s search engine was an illegal company, and the US Justice Department proposed severe penalties, including selling off Google’s Chrome browser. Hearings on these measures will start next Google’s Washington D.C. and may also look into Google’s use of AI.
In the same court, Chegg, Google’s education platform, has filed a lawsuit alleging Google is using its content in AI descriptions. Google has denied these claims, which adds to the legal mess surrounding its AI efforts.
Also Read: Top 7 ethical implications of AI in today’s world
Looking Ahead
As Google pushes the limits of AI in search, it wants to give users faster, more accurate answers while navigating publisher and regulator concerns. The integration of Gemini 2.0 and the testing of “AI mode” is a big move but one that has to balance technical limitations and “external pressures”.