AI search on Google Search goes global with 120 new countries
AI search already Google Searchthe Search Generative Experience (SGE), which currently provides generative AI summaries at the top of the search results page for select users, will soon be available to a wider range of users.
Only six months after the premiere at the event I/O 2023the company announced Wednesday that SGE is now available to Search Labs users in 120 countries and territories, with support for four additional languages and several new useful features, Google wrote on its blog.
In contrast to the rushed and clumsy launch of the Bard chatbot in March, Google opted for a somewhat calmer approach when distributing its AI search assistance. The company began English-language searches in the United States in May, and expanded to English-language users in India and Japan in August.
AI search on Google Search
Starting Wednesday, users around the world can try out the feature. In addition to English, Google Search's AI search now supports Spanish, Portuguese, Korean, and Indonesian languages (in addition to the already existing English, Hindi, and Japanese), so these users can search in their own language. These features are coming to Chrome desktop starting Wednesday, while versions Search Labs-a za Android slowly introduce the application over the next week.
One of the new features in SGE is the improved additional search feature, where users can ask additional questions to the assistant directly on the search results page. As a small Bard window application nested within the generated summary, this new feature allows users to focus on a specific topic without leaving the results page or even having to enter their questions.
Google will reportedly limit the ads to specific, highlighted parts of the page to avoid confusion between them and generated content. Users can expect the tracking feature to start rolling out in the coming weeks. It will initially only be available to English-language users in the US, but will likely expand as Google continues to develop the technology.
Google Search's AI will also begin to help clarify obscure terms when translating. For example, if a user tries to translate “Is there a tie?” in Spanish, the output, gender, and intent of the speaker will change if referring to a tie between two contestants (eg “un empate”) and to the tie you wear around your neck (“una corbata”).
Google blogThis new feature will automatically recognize such words and highlight them, allowing you to click on them, after which a window will appear asking you to choose between the two versions. This feature will first be available to users in the US for English to Spanish translations.
Eventually, Google plans to expand the interactive definitions typically found in generated summaries for educational topics like science, history, or economics to coding and health-related searches. This update should arrive in the next month, again first for English-language users in the US before rolling out to more countries in the coming months.