Google’s latest AI search is so intelligent that it could eventually replace webpages.

A major step forward in the incorporation of generative artificial intelligence into its flagship product, Google announced the release of a new AI-powered search mode that promises deeper, smarter, and more nuanced search results.

CEO Sundar Pichai talked about the invention at the company’s annual developers’ conference, saying it was the culmination of “decades of research.” Now accessible to users in the US, the new AI mode facilitates lengthier and more complicated queries with the possibility for follow-up questions, improves reasoning skills, and has multi-modality.

“This is a total reimagining of search,” Pichai said, highlighting how the new AI mode moves beyond the existing AI Overviews feature that shows AI-generated summaries above traditional search results.

According to Liz Reid, Google’s head of search, the AI mode provides consumers with a more thorough and engaging experience by searching “across the entire web, going way deeper than traditional search.”

More than 1.5 billion users worldwide have embraced AI Overviews since its launch last year, making Google Search the world’s largest generative AI product, according to Pichai.

The decision was made in the face of growing competition from AI-powered platforms like ChatGPT from OpenAI, which has integrated online search into its chatbot service. Despite continuing obstacles, such as combating disinformation and creating viable business models, both businesses are quickly growing their AI technologies.

The move away from the traditional “blue links” structure and toward AI-generated summaries, however, has alarmed experts. This change might significantly lower the number of advertisements displayed next to search results, endangering Google’s main source of income, which is primarily derived from advertising.

Online publishers, including as Wikipedia and news organizations, have expressed concerns about possible drops in web traffic if AI-generated responses reduce click-through rates to their websites, which could have an impact on their long-term viability.

Adding to Google’s challenges, Eddy Cue, Apple’s senior vice president of services, testified at a federal antitrust trial that Google’s search traffic on Apple devices saw its first decline in over two decades this April. Cue attributed the drop to growing competition from AI-based alternatives such as ChatGPT and Perplexity.