Google Discover tests AI chatbot to let users customize their feed with natural language prompts

Google Discover could soon borrow this experimental feature from YouTube

The feature mirrors a recent YouTube experiment but is currently incomplete, with no input box actually available yet. YouTube has recently begun testing the ability to allow users to customize their feed, giving them control over what they are recommended to watch next. The twist, though, is that this ability is facilitated through an AI chatbot that users must interact with by entering prompts. While it's unclear whether YouTube will graduate this experiment into a permanent feature, it seems Google may be looking to bring this AI chatbot-powered custom feed to Discover as well.

Managing your Google Discover feed may soon become easier

Google Discover provides an extensive feed of topics and articles relevant to you, in addition to information on your sports teams, currencies, the stock market, weather, and much more. This year, we've seen Discover take steps to reduce the number of clickbait articles, while also giving users the option to follow their favorite creators. We're now learning that Google may be planning a key change to make the Discover feed even more customizable. Looking at the Google app (version 16.49.59 beta), the folks at Android Authority have managed to trigger a pop-up when exiting the feed customization panel under "Customize your space." It's not any ordinary pop-up, however. As its description warns, "Any changes you've discussed for your feed will be lost." YouTube is also working on a similar feature The mention of the word "discussed" in the pop-up suggests that Google is planning to implement a chatbot into the Discovery feed customization experience. All that's missing from this revelation is an input box to type in your prompts. However, that could appear in forthcoming versions of the Google app. On top of this pop-up, a glow appears briefly around the edges of the Customize panel after tapping Customize your space. This glow is so subtle that you may need to rewatch the video below a couple of times to spot it. It appears to be the familiar four colors we associate with Google, which are also seen across the company's other generative AI products, including AI Mode. It's worth remembering that Google recently rolled out a YouTube experiment that enables users to customize their home feed using prompts. Keeping this in mind, Google using the same principle to let you tweak the Google app's Discover feed doesn't sound unreasonable to us. Based on the evidence uncovered in the Google app beta, it's clear that development on this particular capability is still in its nascency. This means we may have to wait a while to get our hands on the chatbot-based feed customization experience in the Google app for Android. We should be mindful that not all features spotted during development make it into the app, though we're hoping that won't be the case with this chatbot experience for the Discover feed. In addition to letting users see the topics and articles they actually want, this functionality could also save the trouble of manually hiding undesirable content using the three-dot menu. What do you make of this under-development feature in the Google app?

Google letting you customize Discover using prompts with 'Tailor your feed' Lab

Google is testing a new "Tailor your feed" Labs experiment that lets you tell Discover exactly "what you want to see." On Android, open the Google app and tap the Labs beaker icon in the top-left corner. Scroll down for "Tailor your feed." After tapping the toggle, refresh Discover by swiping down. Look for a "Try now" button or open any overflow menu for "Tailor your feed." This brings up a prompt box (that briefly features a four-color glow) with an "Ask for the kind of content you want" hint. There's a carousel of suggestions at the top, including "Stop showing me negative news." You can specify "topics, sources, or vibes," as well as "share your goals and projects" in the prompt. It can also be used to specify what you don't want to see as an alternative to "Not interested in a topic." Examples include: Fine-tune content you're already getting that could be better: Include preferences about publishers, creators, formats, or vibes: Like other modern chatbots, Google will note examples and let you customize further by having a conversation. Google says "Discover's AI will update your feed instantly and remember your preferences, which you can adjust anytime." The history icon in the top-left corner of the prompt box opens the My Activity page. This feature is "still in early testing" and available in US English.