On August 31, 2023, Google, a multinational technology company, unveiled its Search facility, backed by Generative artificial intelligence (AI) abilities, for Indians. From what it’s understood, the company will be making the addition of videos and images with regard to local information and travel recommendations.
Going by Google’s official website, the Search supported Generative AI feature, using Search Labs, has been introduced in countries such as India and Japan. This step is expected to help users avail Search Generative Experience (SGE), so as to enable them to understand topics, uncover new viewpoints and insights, among others. “Like in the US, people in Japan and India will be able to use generative AI capabilities in their local languages, either by typing a query or using voice input. Unique to India, users will also find a language toggle to help multilingual speakers easily switch back and forth between English and Hindi. And Indian users can also listen to the responses, which is a popular preference. In both countries, Search ads will continue to appear in dedicated ad slots throughout the page,” the website mentioned.
Reportedly, Google laid emphasis on its research, which found that Generative AI in Search experience implemented SGE to help users understand ‘complex’ queries and new kinds of questions. Insights from the website highlighted that Google clocked high satisfaction rates among 18-24 year olds, and also that ads either above or below the AI-powered overview were helpful. “Another benefit people appreciate is that this experience is integrated into Search. They like that they can easily scroll and access a broad range of sources on the web, in addition to what they see in the AI-powered snapshot. We’re doing ongoing work to refine our systems to know when SGE is most helpful as an addition to the Search experience,” the website added.
Moreover, the Search supported Generative AI feature allows users to explore different perspectives, along with web content. Seemingly, Google, in its testing phase, was looking for ways to get hold of web pages and back-up data using AI-oriented overviews. “It’s important to note that generative AI in Search remains an experiment and we’ll continue testing different ways of presenting results and listening to feedback, while prioritizing approaches that continue to drive traffic to relevant websites,” Google concluded.
