Google has become so integral to online navigation that its name became a verb, meaning “to find things on the Internet.” Soon, Google might just tell you what’s on the Internet instead of showing you. The company has announced an expansion of its AI search features, powered by Gemini 2.0. Everyone will soon see more AI Overviews at the top of the results page, but Google is also testing a more substantial change in the form of AI Mode. This version of Google won’t show you the 10 blue links at all—Gemini completely takes over the results in AI Mode.
This marks the debut of Gemini 2.0 in Google search. Google announced the first Gemini 2.0 models in December 2024, beginning with the streamlined Gemini 2.0 Flash. The heavier versions of Gemini 2.0 are still in testing, but Google says it has tuned AI Overviews with this model to offer help with harder questions in the areas of math, coding, and multimodal queries.
With this update, you will begin seeing AI Overviews on more results pages, and minors with Google accounts will see AI results for the first time. In fact, even logged out users will see AI Overviews soon. This is a big change, but it’s only the start of Google’s plans for AI search.
Gemini 2.0 also powers the new AI Mode for search. It’s launching as an opt-in feature via Google’s Search Labs, offering a totally new alternative to search as we know it. This custom version of the Gemini large language model (LLM) skips the standard web links that have been part of every Google search thus far.
Embrace, extend, extinguish, but now it’s Google doing it to the World Wide Web.
Who asked for this?
Unlike most of Lemmy, I actually like AI and even I don’t want this.
thinking google is about offering you a quality search at this point is like thinking facebook is about improving your social experience. they both started like that and that’s how they hooked people up. but they have their own interests now. those interests revolve around affecting how people act and think. one central thing they need to do to fulfil those interests is controlling what people see and know… and that’s very hard to do when this pesky external content generated by other that is hard to control gets into way…
They always had their own interests. If you thought otherwise, you’re naive. People generally start a business to make money.
maybe i am naive, maybe you are cynical.
some people do somerimes start business cause they have a good product in mind…
This is exactly why I’m working so hard to eradicate the verb “to google” from my vocabulary. I switched to DuckDuckGo (which then started providing AI summaries, but allowed an easy opt-out).
Even better, use the google verb to refer to searching anywhere other than Google and effectively genericide it.
How many cases of “You should eat at least one small rock per day” AI bullshit does Google think is acceptable for production deployment?
I was just dealing with a plumbing problem the other day, and I was like, “I know, I’ll ask AI!”
Basically everything it told me was completely wrong. And this was Claude Sonnet 3.7, one of the best!
Wait…you shouldn’t be doing that? Damnit! What am I going to do with the small rock mine I just bought?!
More than zero, which is too many for my taste.
Why is everything shit
Capitalism. Next question…
Can it be worse than the sanitised results they give you now?
Yes absolutely
Been using 4get for some time now, I don’t think a search engine can get better than this
I looked into this a while back and came to the conclusion that the dev didn’t seem trustworthy. Also, just looking on the homepage, the images it showed me were a dildo with “4get” stuck on it using a sticky note and a modified manga panel about beating women. Not sure I’d want to use something like that in public.
Not sure what I expected. For the equally curious with no foresight:
definitely a dildo with 4get stuck on it using sticky note
Honestly that type of anti-corporate imagery makes me trust them more
yeah, the dev seems kinda like a shitposter ngl (although there are some funny pictures in the front page)
However, I configured it as my default search engine, so I never go to the front page. Also, at least is free and open source (AGPL)
startpage. you’re welcome.
it’s also not us owned or based.
Unfortunately it’s been sold to the US.
well that’s not good :/ sigh
Startpage is owned by System1 who are based in LA.
Well you already said I’m welcome, but thank you anyway.
I mean their search results have gone to absolute shit anyway, the AI is probably better at this point.
Absolute shit results run through an AI gives you even worse absolute shit.
doubt
Wait, google does searches now too? Wow they have a service for everything.
searxng
Been using Ecosia for months now. DuckDuckGo and Startpage before that. I’m pretty happy with Ecosia search results, can’t complain.
Ok, but why should I go to Google for ai answers when I can get the same from openai, other models or even local installations without all the ads?
