At Google’s annual developer event held last week in Mountain View, California, the company unveiled a new feature in its search engine that adds a chat-based AI experience, allowing users to interact directly with a smart chatbot.
AI Mode
The new feature, introduced as “AI Overview,” is currently available in the U.S. It lets users type their questions directly into the search bar and receive answers with expert-level quality. Sundar Pichai, Google’s CEO, described this development as a major step toward making digital platforms even smarter.
According to experts, integrating the Gemini chatbot into Google search results not only improves the user experience but also reduces the need to visit multiple websites, shifting users’ focus toward interacting with the AI tool.
Although these changes bring value to users, they could have implications for Google’s revenue model, since a large portion of the company’s income comes from clicks on links.
A Major Breakthrough in the World of Smart Glasses
Meanwhile, in an effort to stay ahead of competitors like Meta and OpenAI, Google has also announced a new project in the field of smart glasses.
The augmented reality glasses Google is working on are considered a new generation of the discontinued Google Glass project. These devices are set to be developed in collaboration with brands like Warby Parker and Gentle Monster, and will include a camera, microphone, and speaker. Google hopes this innovation will help it claim a share of the growing smart wearable market — a space where competitors like Meta are already active with AI-powered Ray-Ban glasses. Production is scheduled to begin later this year.
In addition, Google reviewed the performance of the AI Overviews feature at the conference — a tool introduced last year that displays AI-generated summaries at the top of search results. The feature initially faced criticism for sometimes offering strange answers, such as recommending glue to stick cheese to pizza or suggesting people eat rocks daily!
However, Pichai stated that the feature is now used 1.5 billion times per month across more than 200 countries, and has played a key role in boosting Google Search usage in countries like the United States and India. He described the tool as one of Google’s most successful search innovations in the past decade.
These developments come as Google faces a legal case in the United States over its dominance in the search market. Despite these challenges, Google’s CEO emphasized that the company is continuing to advance in AI, building faster, smarter, and more practical tools for users around the world.
