There’s a lot of overlap across several of Google’s key tools. Circle to Search and Google Lens are similar tools that fulfill adjacent needs. Then add Gemini Live‘s camera mode to the mix, and the lines get blurrier.
In a similar vein, the tech giant’s latest AI Mode is essentially a more in-depth version of Google Search, letting users dive deeper into their queries, complete with support for asking conversational follow-up queries.
Now, Google is blurring the lines even further by introducing a new AI Mode feature — one that pairs Gemini Live with it.
Unveiled earlier this year in May, the tech giant is now integrating Gemini Live’s voice conversation capabilities into AI Mode. The new tool, which has been aptly named Search Live, is rolling out now to US Google app users on Android and iOS. This means users can now verbally pose their queries directly using the search tool and get AI-generated audio responses that are conversational in nature and allow you to pose follow-up questions.
It isn’t entirely clear if AI Mode’s Search Live runs on a different model than Gemini Live. “Search Live in AI Mode uses a custom version of Gemini with advanced voice capabilities,” wrote the tech giant. If the new integration is essentially just a port of Gemini Live, then users might just be better off accessing Live capabilities directly from Gemini. In contrast, for users that never hopped on the AI chatbot train and primarily utilized the Google app for queries, the new integration should offer an intuitive and easy-to-use entry point into conversational AI.
You need to opt in to try Search Live
For now, the new integration is limited to voice queries, but Google says it intends to bring the full suite of Project Astra’s camera view functionality to AI mode “in the coming months,” which should make AI Mode a lot more versatile. For what it’s worth, accessing the new feature still requires you to opt-in. Here’s how you can do that:
Mobile
- Open the Google app on your smartphone.
- Tap the Labs button (flask icon) on the top-left.
- Navigate to the AI experiments section.
- Tap Turn on under AI Mode.
Desktop
- Head to the Google Labs website.
- Under AI experiments, turn on AI Mode.
Source: Google
Once you’ve opted in, you should see a dedicated Search Live icon under the Google app’s search bar, as seen in the images above. Users will be able to tap the ‘transcript’ button to continue the conversation silently, or head to their AI Mode history to hop back into a previous search.
Are you excited about trying out Search Live in the Google app? Or will you limit your conversational queries to Gemini Live? Let us know in the comments below!
