Google Unveils 'Total Reimagining Of Search' With Chatbot-Style Feature To Compete with OpenAI

Alphabet‘s Google GOOG GOOGL revamps its search engine by introducing an AI chatbot-style feature, aiming to stay ahead of competitors like OpenAI.

What Happened: Google has introduced an “AI mode” in its search and Chrome browser for all U.S. users from Tuesday. This new feature will offer a conversational, question-and-answer experience, similar to OpenAI's ChatGPT, rather than the traditional list of links, reported the Financial Times.

The announcement was made by Sundar Pichai, CEO of Google’s parent company, Alphabet, during its annual I/O developer conference in Mountain View, California. Pichai labelled the move as a “total reimagining of search.”

This release is part of Google’s ongoing efforts to incorporate generative AI into its dominant search engine, despite investor concerns that the new products may cannibalize its current revenue streams. The “AI Mode” follows last year’s introduction of “AI Overviews” at the I/O conference.

Among other things, Google showcased new products, including smart glasses and introduced an "AI Ultra Plan" costing $249.99 per month. The plan offers higher AI usage limits and early access to experimental tools like Project Mariner, which automates browser actions and Deep Think, an advanced version of Gemini designed for complex reasoning tasks, as reported by Reuters.

Why It Matters: The revamp of Google’s search engine comes at a crucial time for the company. Google, criticized for lagging in AI development while rivals like OpenAI and Anthropic gained ground, has accelerated its rollout of new tools. It has upgraded its Gemini model—claiming the 2.5 version outperforms competitors in key benchmarks, especially in coding—and plans to launch its AI assistant, Project Mariner, this summer.

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The assistant can perform complex tasks by controlling users' browsers and software. However, growing concerns about privacy remain as AI models begin incorporating long-term memory.

Google’s CEO, Sundar Pichai, has also been in talks with Apple Inc. AAPL to integrate the company’s Gemini AI into iPhones, as federal regulators work to curb Google’s dominance in online search. However, as AI development charges on, tech experts have raised concerns over safety taking a backseat to profit potential.

Benzinga Edge Stock Rankings shows that Alphabet had a stronger price trend over the short term but a weaker trend over the medium and long term. Its momentum ranking was moderate at the 35th percentile, whereas its growth ranking was strong at the 89th percentile; the details of other metrics are available here.

The shares of Alphabet dropped 1.52% to $165.32, while on a year-to-date basis, it dropped 13.28%.