Google’s AI Overviews just got a major Gemini 2.0 upgrade – here’s what’s new
Google is rolling out Gemini 2.0 in AI Overviews and introducing AI Mode, a powerful new experimental feature in Search.
These updates promise faster, higher-quality responses, expanded accessibility, and enhanced reasoning capabilities to tackle more complex queries.
Since its debut, AI Overviews — Google’s AI-generated summaries that answer search queries—have been used by over a billion people worldwide.
With the latest upgrade to Gemini 2.0, AI Overviews are now more effective at handling advanced math, coding, and multimodal queries (e.g., those involving text, images, and voice).
The improved system provides faster, higher-quality responses and displays AI-generated summaries more consistently for relevant searches.
In addition to performance improvements, AI Overviews are expanding to a wider audience. Previously, users needed to be signed in to access them, but Google is now making AI Overviews available without requiring a login.
AI Overviews – what’s new
For power users looking for even deeper AI integration in search, Google is launching AI Mode, an opt-in experiment from Google Labs. This feature leverages a custom version of Gemini 2.0 to provide advanced reasoning, deeper exploration, and multimodal support for complex queries.
Unlike standard AI Overviews, AI Mode can:
- Answer highly detailed, multi-step questions that typically require multiple searches
- Compare multiple options (e.g., “What’s the difference in sleep tracking between a smart ring, smartwatch, and tracking mat?”)
- Offer conversational follow-ups, allowing users to refine their search and get better-targeted results
- Use multimodal input, meaning users can search with text, voice, or images
- Tap into Google’s real-time information systems, including the Knowledge Graph, shopping data, and up-to-the-minute sources
Google says AI Mode will generate AI-powered responses and provide links to explore additional perspectives across the web.
An emphasis on accuracy
Google has integrated AI Mode into its core ranking systems and real-time data sources to ensure accuracy and reliability. The system uses a “query fan-out” technique, running multiple related searches in parallel to compile the best responses.
Despite these advancements, Google acknowledges that AI Mode is still in its early stages and may occasionally produce inaccurate or biased results. To counteract this, the company is implementing safeguards, including:
- Fact-checking with corroborated web sources to prevent AI hallucinations
- Higher standards for YMYL (Your Money or Your Life) topics, ensuring financial, medical, and safety-related information comes from reputable sources
- Strict safety filters, incorporating tools like SafeSearch to block harmful or explicit content
How to try AI Mode
As part of its experimental phase, Google will initially roll out AI Mode exclusively to Google One AI Premium subscribers before expanding it further based on user feedback.
AI Mode will be available as an opt-in for those eager to try Google’s most advanced AI search experience. Users can access it in several ways:
- Through Google Search – After entering a query, select the “AI Mode” tab
- Directly at google.com/aimode – A dedicated page for AI-powered searches
- Via the Google app – Tap the AI Mode icon below the search bar
The future of AI in search
With these updates, Google pushes AI search capabilities further while staying competitive against rivals like OpenAI’s ChatGPT in the AI race.
While still experimental, Google plans to improve AI Mode with additional visual responses, better formatting, and expanded functionality based on user feedback.
For now, AI Mode represents cutting-edge improvements to AI-assisted search — offering deeper insights, more interactivity, and a glimpse into the future of how we find and engage with information online.
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