Google is making changes to its venerable search interface so users can more naturally interact with its AI features. “AI Mode,” a project brewing in Google’s Search Labs, will slowly roll out to general users within the company’s current search interface. (A new “AI Mode” tab will appear alongside its search box.) “With AI Mode, you can truly ask Search anything — from complex explanations about tech and electronics to comparisons that help with really specific tasks, like assessing insurance options for a new pet,” Soufi Esmaeilzadeh, director of product management for Google’s search products, said in a blog post. The new features will migrate from the experimental AI Mode features already being tested by users in Google’s Search Labs. Google has also added features to the experimental AI Mode so users get better search results. With AI Mode now ready for the real world, Google promises the tool will offer more than AI Overviews; it provides basic insights for questions plugged into the search box. AI Mode is based on the Gemini 2.0 AI model. “Because our power users are finding it so helpful, we’re starting a limited test outside of Labs. In the coming weeks, a small percentage of people in the US will see the AI Mode tab in Search,” Esmaeilzadeh said. Google’s experimental AI Mode app had been available only to limited users. The app is available for Apple’s iOS and Android. A Google spokesperson declined to offer further details about AI Mode search. Google has been talking about integrating AI into search results more comprehensively since the day it launched its first large language model called Bard. The early models hallucinated and malfunctioned, so Google has been cautious in rolling out AI into its general search features. But the company had to roll out core AI features to its search tools as soon as possible, said Jack Gold, principal analyst at J Gold Associates. OpenAI and Anthropic have built search into their AI interfaces, and Meta recently launched its own chatbot based on Llama 4. Microsoft was already ahead of Google in integrating AI search into Bing results. “It’s seeing increasing competition for AI from companies like Meta and OpenAI that could take some share away from them…, but it’s not clear that a competent AI model couldn’t essentially duplicate and enhance search functions for many users — see Perplexity, as an example,” Gold said. Google attaching Gemini closer to its search tools offers several benefits, including feedback from users on how well the answers resonate. Enhancing search with AI could also drive down Google’s compute power and infrastructure costs as it could limit the number of searches needed before users get desired results. “It can better tune its models for accuracy. It also enhances their ability to target ads at users, as AI will show complementary topics that can then be advertised about,” Gold said. The experimental AI Mode in the search labs already delivered useful information about products and places. Google is now adding more rich results and multimedia features. A search for destinations, results, and products will show in a more organized format. “Rolling out over the coming week, you’ll begin to see visual place and product cards in AI Mode with the ability to tap to get more details,” Esmaeilzadeh said. Shopping, dining, and services results will have more options, real-time pricing, promotions, and ratings. And a new left-side panel on the desktop will make it easier to jump back into past searches on longer-running tasks and projects. Typically, Google requires consent to record search history to understand user trends. A Google spokesperson declined to comment on whether AI Mode would require that.