How Search is Set to Change with Google’s Keynote I/O Update 2024

On 14th May 2024, Sundar Pichai (CEO of the search engine giant Google) and his teammates took the stage with elan and a sense of comfortable innovation that left us stunned!

Be it Search, Photos, Workspace, Android, and more, every product is set to transform with Gemini’s multimodal and long context capabilities. 

He said, “One of the most exciting transformations with Gemini has been in Google Search. In the past year, we have answered billions of queries as part of our Search Generative Experience.”

AI Overviews, the new name for Search Generative Experience (SGE), was officially launched on 14 May 2024 in the United States of America, marking a significant global shift in search technology that will soon be rolled out worldwide!

Whether you are an e-commerce business owner, brand SEO strategist, or simply a consumer of Google’s Search products, you must be on tenterhooks, wondering what the implications of these unprecedented updates will be on your business and your daily life! 

In today’s blog, we will walk you through;

• High-level updates and their implications for Search
• AI Overview: The heart of the revolution
• Circle to Search: A game-changer in visual Search
• Multimodal Search capabilities: Unified Search experience
• Expanding beyond the SERPs with personalization
• Voice Search and Conversational AI: The future of interaction
• Business implications: SEO and marketing

By the end of this piece, you will gain significant clarity on how Search has evolved in the Gemini era, what’s on the cards in the near future, and what you, as a business owner or Search user, can do to float your boat and keep the sails up! 

On that note, let’s get this one going!

Source

High-level updates and their implications for Search

Let’s begin our journey by taking a bird’s eye view of the key takeaways from Google’s Keynote Updates 2024 for Search.

1. Reducing Search time with AI: Google’s main goal is to reduce the time users spend searching using advanced AI technologies.
2. AI Overviews rollout: The new AI-powered search results page, previously known as Search Generative Experience (SGE), is now fully implemented. This feature provides quick, AI-generated overviews of search results.
3. Innovative features:

• Ask Photos: Users can now ask for information from their photo collections.

• Email Summaries in Gmail: AI can summarize your email inbox, making it easier to manage.

• Notebook LM: This tool can create full lessons from your research materials, streamlining the learning process.

4. Multi-step reasoning: This feature allows Google to handle complex queries more effectively by combining keyphrase logic, ordering, and reasoning.

5. Impact on businesses: While AI Overviews will significantly influence search, businesses should stay calm. The focus should remain on creating thorough content, enhancing your Experience,  Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness (E-E-A-T), and maintaining strong technical SEO practices.

AI Overview: The heart of the revolution

AI Overviews were introduced as part of the Search Generative Experience in May 2023. Initially, users had to opt in through Google Search Labs to try this feature. By March 2024, Google began testing AI Overviews with a select group of users.

How do AI Overviews work?

AI Overviews uses generative AI technology powered by Google Gemini to answer search queries. They provide brief snippets of information based on the query and relevant web content.

Example of AI Overviews in action

Here is an example of how AI Overviews appear in Google Search:

Source

AI Overviews so far:

Limited queries: AI Overviews do not appear for every search. They are reserved for more complex questions where Google’s AI can provide additional value beyond standard search results. If the AI Overview doesn’t enhance the information provided by default search results, it won’t be displayed.

Query specifics

• Percentage of Queries: Google has not disclosed the number of queries triggering an AI Overview. 

• Ads and AI Overviews: AI Overviews are not dependent on whether ads are displayed. The appearance of AI Overviews is more about adding value to search results rather than the presence of ads. Ads will remain clearly labeled and appear on the search page in dedicated slots.

Applicable queries

YMYL Queries: Google may show AI Overviews for health, medical, and financial queries, often called YMYL (Your Money, Your Life) queries.

Circle to Search: A game-changer in visual Search

One of the most innovative features introduced at Google I/O 2024 is “Circle to Search.” This tool allows users to highlight and search specific parts of an image by simply circling them on their screen. This feature is particularly useful for visual searches where specific details are important.

How Circle to Search works:

1. Interactive highlighting: Users can draw a circle around an object or area within an image on their device. Google’s AI then analyzes the highlighted portion to provide relevant search results.
2. Seamless integration: Circle to Search integrates smoothly with Google Lens, allowing users to transition effortlessly between identifying objects and retrieving detailed information about them.
3. Use cases: From identifying plants and animals to finding products for purchase or learning about landmarks, Circle to Search makes visual searches more precise and user-friendly.

Multimodal Search capabilities: Unified Search experience

With its new multimodal capabilities, Google is pushing Search boundaries. It allows users to combine text, images, video, and voice inputs in a single query. This innovation provides a more natural and comprehensive way to search, mimicking how humans interact with the world.

Benefits of multimodal Search:

1. Enhanced flexibility: Users can start a search with a voice command, refine it with text, and finish by adding an image, making the search process more fluid and intuitive.
2. Comprehensive results: By integrating different types of inputs, Google can deliver richer and more detailed search results that encompass all relevant information formats.
3. Natural interaction: Multimodal search allows for a more human-like interaction with technology, catering to diverse user preferences and contexts.

Expanding beyond the SERPs with personalization

Most digital marketers focus on changes to the usual Google search engine results page (SERPs). However, a major takeaway from Google I/O is that search is evolving beyond just the SERPs.

Upgrades across Google services

The new Gemini 1.5 Pro technology will significantly enhance Google Photos, Gmail, and Notebook LM.

Google Photos with Ask Photos

Starting in Summer 2024, the Ask Photos feature will allow you to search through your photos for virtually anything. For example, Google CEO Sundar Pichai demonstrated how you could find your car’s license plate number by simply asking Gemini. The AI scans all the photos on your device, identifies the car that appears most frequently, and retrieves the license plate number.

Gmail enhancements

The new Gmail features will be incredibly helpful for busy marketers. With the integration of multimodality and long context capabilities, Gemini can now search through and summarize all recent emails, helping you stay on top of your inbox.

Notebook LM Upgrades

Lastly, Notebook LM, a research and writing tool introduced at the previous Google I/O, is receiving a substantial upgrade. This makes it even more powerful for conducting research and organizing information.

Senior Director of Product Management Josh Woodward showcased how Gemini 1.5 Pro helped him customize a science lesson for his son’s learning style. By uploading all the learning materials, including science worksheets, into the tool, it generated a comprehensive and interacttive guide with study resources, FAQs, and quizzes.

These updates show that Google is pushing search capabilities beyond traditional boundaries, integrating advanced personalization and AI across its suite of services.

Voice Search and Conversational AI: The future of interaction

Voice search continues to grow in importance, and Google is enhancing its capabilities with more accurate and natural language processing. This shift is making interactions with search more conversational and intuitive.

Advancements in Voice Search:

1. Improved accuracy: Enhanced speech recognition and natural language processing ensure that voice searches are understood more accurately and contextually.
2. Conversational interaction: Users can have more natural back-and-forth interactions with Google’s AI, similar to speaking with a human assistant.
3. Accessibility: Voice search makes information more accessible to users with disabilities or those who prefer hands-free interaction, expanding the usability of Google’s search.

Business implications: SEO and marketing

The updates announced at Google I/O 2024 have significant implications for businesses and marketers. Traditional SEO strategies must adapt to the new search landscape, focusing more on context, multimedia content, and user experience.

SEO strategies for the new Search era:

1. Contextual content: Creating contextually relevant content tailored to user intent is more important than ever. Businesses need to focus on understanding and addressing user needs comprehensively.
2. Multimedia content: With the rise of multimodal search, incorporating images, videos, and interactive elements into content can improve visibility and engagement.
3. Local SEO: Enhancing local SEO practices by providing real-time data and up-to-date business information can help businesses stay competitive in local searches.

Wondering what’s next for Search?

The updates from Google I/O 2024 set a new standard for what users can expect from Search technology. As we look to the future, several trends and innovations will likely shape the continued evolution of Search.

Predicted future trends:

• Deeper AI integration: Continued advancements in AI will enable even more sophisticated and intuitive search capabilities, making interactions more seamless and human-like.

• Augmented Reality (AR): Integrating AR in search could offer immersive experiences, allowing users to interact with information more engagingly and intuitively.

• Sustainability and accessibility: Google will likely continue focusing on making search more accessible and sustainable, ensuring that technology benefits a broader audience while minimizing its environmental impact.