Google has introduced AI Mode to users in India. It showcases how new technology is redefining what it means to search for something online. The search tool is in the experimental stage and users will need to opt in using Google Labs. After opting in, users can ask questions in English.
AI Mode is meant for complex reasoning and multimodality, and the “ability to go deeper through follow-up questions and helpful links to the web”. Google said that using a custom version of Gemini 2.5, it lets you ask longer, more complex or nuanced questions that would have previously required multiple searches.
The tool is already available in the US. Early testers of AI Mode are asking much longer queries: 2-3x the length of traditional searches. The company says it will be helpful when it comes to “exploratory questions” like comparing products, planning a trip, or understanding complex how-tos. An example has been offered: “My kids are four and seven and have lots of energy. Suggest creative ways to get them active and moving indoors, especially on hot days, without needing a lot of space or expensive toys.”
Google, which shows AI-generated summaries on its search pages for the last year, said AI Mode would complement its traditional counterpart.
“We’re really trying for AI Mode to be best at a new class of questions that are harder, more specific, and really the best for when you’re going back and forth trying to get something done,” Robby Stein, a Google executive who oversees the search product team, told The New York Times earlier this year.
India will be a good testing ground for the feature because it is home to over 870 million Internet users. At the same time, it will offer Google an opportunity to stay ahead in the AI game. People have started using AI tools like ChatGPT and Perplexity more, offering Google stiff competition.
The other Google tool that is finding takers is AI Overviews, which is now used by over 1.5 billion users every month. Google said that in the US and India, it’s already driving a more than 10 per cent increase in usage for the types of queries where they appear.