this post was submitted on 05 Mar 2025
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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.

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[–] LemurAppointments@lemmy.ca 4 points 5 days ago (2 children)

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).

[–] rhpp@programming.dev 2 points 5 days ago

Even better, use the google verb to refer to searching anywhere other than Google and effectively genericide it.

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[–] GaMEChld@lemmy.world 9 points 6 days ago (3 children)

I mean their search results have gone to absolute shit anyway, the AI is probably better at this point.

[–] Rooty@lemmy.world 4 points 5 days ago

My coworker who has an absolute hard-on for ChatGPT has tried several times in vain to get it to say the correct answer to a question I knew the answer to. LLMs are bullshit engines and toys for the malicious.

[–] OutlierBlue@lemmy.ca 5 points 6 days ago

Absolute shit results run through an AI gives you even worse absolute shit.

[–] acutfjg@feddit.nl 5 points 6 days ago
[–] Walk_blesseD@lemmy.blahaj.zone 16 points 6 days ago (2 children)
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[–] Computerchairgeneral@fedia.io 14 points 6 days ago (1 children)

Thanks Google, I hate it. At least the udm=14 trick and website still works, at least until google decides to stop supporting that feature. Definitely going to be using that more and more if this becomes the default google experience.

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[–] NarrativeBear@lemmy.world 14 points 6 days ago* (last edited 6 days ago)

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[–] Lettuceeatlettuce@lemmy.ml 12 points 6 days ago

Oh wow sounds great, can I get in line now to not use it?

[–] XenoK@lemmy.dbzer0.com 12 points 6 days ago (2 children)

I don't really get Google's angle since it's pretty obvious that their AI search sucks. Maybe it's just to impress shareholders?

[–] theneverfox@pawb.social 12 points 6 days ago (1 children)

I mean, they're ruining their search anyways. It's almost unusable at this point, it's like asking for relevant ads and two year old Reddit posts

Is it censorship? Did they decide to just straight up sell SEO? Are websites locking down and blocking their crawlers to stop AI training crawlers?

I legitimately find Bing to be better at this point, but whatever they're doing it's maddening. Even better AI assisted web searches kinda suck because the data fed into them is more of the same

But solid chance they're trying to boost Gemini, which has been a shockingly bad llm for a company that basically wrote the book on AI not too long ago

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[–] Gormadt@lemmy.blahaj.zone 12 points 6 days ago

Considering how often Google's AI hallucinates some garbage for an answer this is going to be terrible

[–] singletona@lemmy.world 12 points 6 days ago

When I use a web search tool I want to look at the websites themselves. Not having to go through Gemini (the AI not the protocol) telling me what IT thinks I want...

Assuming AGI ever develops and bothers to sift through data. I've no problem with AI as a tool (that is, Dumb AI like we currently have.)

When I'm doing a web search rather than actually calling up Gemini (The AI not the Protocol) I want a WEB SEARCH... that means I am not looking to use AI. I'm wanting to use OI (Organic Intelligence.)

[–] static_radio@lemmy.ml 11 points 6 days ago (4 children)

Is there any escape from shitty AI slop in my search results?

What search engines are there that I can use that arent a proxy for one of the big ones? And yes I know about Kagi, I’d prefer open source if possible.

[–] IMALlama@lemmy.world 7 points 6 days ago

Moving from enshitified closed source to a different closed source that's trying to position itself as user first isn't necessarily bad.

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[–] Xanza@lemm.ee 9 points 6 days ago (4 children)

I noticed today that UDM mode for Google is displaying sponsored results now, too...

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[–] IsThisAnAI@lemmy.world 7 points 6 days ago (12 children)

Kagi. But you free loaders would have to pay for something.

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[–] blurcosp@leminal.space 8 points 6 days ago

Yup, this was all the motivation I needed to jump ship from Google, fuck those clowns.

[–] Sam_Bass@lemmy.world 2 points 5 days ago* (last edited 4 days ago)

Number one reason to at least distance oneself from the big G. They shove unwanted shit down your throat despite the loud protesters

[–] Bloomcole@lemmy.world 4 points 5 days ago (1 children)

Can it be worse than the sanitised results they give you now?

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[–] Pondis@lemmy.world 5 points 6 days ago (1 children)

Which is EXACTLY why I just moved to using Vivaldi browser and StartPage as a search engine. Fuck these guys.

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[–] grumt@lemmy.ml 4 points 6 days ago (1 children)

Been using 4get for some time now, I don't think a search engine can get better than this

[–] arcterus@lemmy.blahaj.zone 7 points 6 days ago* (last edited 6 days ago) (6 children)

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.

[–] AbsoluteChicagoDog@lemm.ee 4 points 5 days ago

Honestly that type of anti-corporate imagery makes me trust them more

[–] grumt@lemmy.ml 4 points 6 days ago* (last edited 6 days ago) (4 children)

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)

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[–] xia@lemmy.sdf.org 7 points 6 days ago

Of all the sources of truth, why pick auto-complete?

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