Google Search is undergoing a major transformation, with the "AI mode" set to become the default option. This mode is based on Google's existing "AI summary" feature, similar to other generative AI tools like ChatGPT, allowing users to continue conversations with AI after their initial search. This shift means that Google will move from being an information portal to the web into a closed platform centered around generative AI.
Logan Kilpatrick, a Google product manager, hinted on the social platform X that AI mode will soon become the new search experience. For example, visiting google.com/ai now automatically redirects to AI mode, and when users asked if this mode would become the default setting, he replied, "Soon :)".
Currently, AI mode is available in 180 countries, including the United States, but it has not completely replaced traditional search. In the latest update, Google added new agent features to AI mode, allowing users to directly book local services or purchase event tickets through a chat interface.
At the same time, Google's legal team in a lawsuit regarding its advertising technology division stated, "The open web is in rapid decline." They claimed that splitting Google's advertising business would only make things worse, especially as ad revenue is gradually shifting from traditional open websites to connected television, retail media, and what Google calls "popular publishing platforms, such as AI chatbots, which can effectively monetize content."
Google pointed out that forcing a split would accelerate this trend, squeezing the resources of publishers who rely on ad revenue. The company is opposing demands in the lawsuit to sell its ad exchange, open-source its auction logic, and give up 50% of its net revenue. Other proposals call for new behavioral rules and open APIs to limit Google's market power and increase competition.
Notably, while Google uses the argument of the decline of the open web to defend itself, it is also launching AI mode and directing search traffic to its own platform, which undoubtedly accelerates the trend it warned about. Ultimately, Google is using its role in this issue to resist demands for business divestiture, and this circular logic is evident in contradictory statements by Google executives about how AI search affects the open web.
Key Points:
🌐 ** Google is about to launch "AI mode," allowing users to have continuous conversations with AI and reshape the search experience.**
💼 ** Google's legal team claims the open web is rapidly declining, and splitting the advertising business could worsen this trend.**
🔄 ** Google uses the argument of the decline of the open web to oppose business splits, yet it is simultaneously pushing for the closure of its own platform.**
