Google is bringing back classic search, without AI β and I couldn’t be happier about that
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Google Search has gone through a lot of changes over the years β some big, some small, but each one has moved the iconic Internet search engine further and further away from its original form.
You see one interactive timeline from Google Search on Google’s own website, if you’re curious about how it’s evolved over the years. Some of these additions β like the βDid you meanβ¦?β suggestions for typos and the addition of new search modes including images, news and video β were obvious slam dunks for Google, improving the versatility and functionality of its search engine. Others, like the inevitable arrival of sponsored ads in results and the recent AI-powered ‘Search Generative Experience’ (SGE), are… less popular.
Well, Google has seemingly done the unimaginable: it has released a new ‘web’ setting for the search engine that takes you back to the glory days of Google Search in the year 2000, where only a list of text-based links appears. That’s right: no images, no shopping results, and no AI-generated answers.
A more perfect search engine
The ‘web’ mode has been rolled out worldwide and should now be accessible to everyone; you’ll find it under the ‘More’ option at the top of the results, below the search bar itself.
Unsurprisingly, it was received with loud applause on social media. Commenters on Twitter (cough,
We’ve launched a new ‘Web’ filter that shows only text-based links, just as you can filter to show other types of results, such as images or videos. The filter will appear at the top of the results page alongside other filters or as part of the ‘More’ option, rolling out todayβ¦ pic.twitter.com/tIUy9LNCy5May 14, 2024
It’s a bit sad that Google’s decision to turn back time on its most widely used product has generated such a positive response, and it was no doubt done to counter any backlash resulting from SGE’s gradual rollout. The AI-powered search tool will use machine learning to scour the internet for relevant data and provide an AI-generated response, which may be useful for some users but poses a significant threat to online media and information channels.
It’s worth noting that the web search view still has sponsored text links, but I guess we can’t have everything. Personally, I am very happy with this change. Not only do I prefer to read for myself rather than receive AI-generated information from my online searches, but as a digital journalist I have a vested interest in Google keeping search simple. .
The dangers of AI in search
Look, Google’s SGE experiment is one that I fear is doomed to failure β especially since it could ultimately consume itself. SGE is undeniably a powerful tool that can provide a neat summary of the information users are looking for, but it requires content written by people to do that.
An example Google gave when SGE was first unveiled was the “best Bluetooth speaker for a pool party” question. Sure enough, SGE produced a list of suggested products with links to both retailers and sites that reviewed the featured speakers.
Now of course we have our own article ranking the best Bluetooth speakers, as do many other tech news sites. We have literally hundreds of buying guides, and keeping them up to date with useful information for consumers is a big job lot of work, but it’s work we like to do because it pays our bills and ultimately helps consumers find what they really need to know β you know, the whole reason Ny Breaking exists as a site.
But if SGE takes over, all affiliate and ad revenue generated by us β and every other site that makes product recommendations β is in danger of evaporating.
If that happens, we will turn around: the journalism industry has always been at the forefront, ready and able to adapt to the challenges of an ever-changing media landscape. So yes, we will find a new way to reach our readers in the coming years, whether directly, through newsletters, social media, subscriptions or any other methods.
However, if it becomes pointless to pull up all those buying guides, recipes, and top-10 lists within Google Search for the sites that create them, many may choose to prevent Google’s bot from crawling them, or at least to use to train his LLMs. . And if that happens, Google’s AI will become less and less relevant and helpful in its SGE suggestions as the fuel source dries up.
I know this sounds like whining. βOh no, Google is going to destroy our profitability!β But that doesn’t mean it isn’t a problem. Google may have created a new version of online search that will self-destruct if it becomes successful.
In other words, I’m glad to see “web search” making a heroic return in this age of AI uncertainty. After all, I’m not going to use Bing…