Google's parent company, Alphabet, announced on Thursday that it is extending its AI-generated search summaries to six additional countries, just two months after experiencing issues and scaling back certain functionalities post-launch. The search leader introduced AI Overviews in May, which appear at the top of the search results page, preceding traditional web links, after a year of testing a limited version. This feature faced significant criticism when screenshots of incorrect answers, like a pizza recipe including glue and a claim that former U.S. President Barack Obama is Muslim, went viral.
Google admitted to these 'odd and erroneous overviews' and in late May, shared updates to the product via a blog post. These updates included restrictions on which queries trigger AI responses and limited the use of user-generated content from sites like Reddit as sources for answers. 'I have enough evidence to say that quality is only improving,' stated Hema Budaraju, Senior Director of Product at Google, in an interview with Reuters. She referenced internal Google data indicating higher user satisfaction and longer queries among those using the feature.
AI Overviews are now being rolled out in Brazil, India, Indonesia, Japan, Mexico, and Britain, in local languages including Hindi and Portuguese. Additionally, Google is integrating hyperlinks into the feature, displaying websites to the right of the AI-generated answer, and is internally testing an update that would embed links directly within the overview text. These developments come as the media industry expresses concerns about potential loss of referral traffic from consumers clicking through to publishers' websites. Budaraju highlighted that the new update offers a 'three-way benefit' for Google, consumers, and publishers.
Last week, a U.S. judge determined that Google holds an illegal monopoly in search, paving the way for a trial that could lead to the breakup of Alphabet. Meanwhile, advancements in AI by competitors like Microsoft-backed OpenAI could present a more substantial challenge.
