Google Enhances AI Overviews with New Features and Controls

Google is testing new ways to lure people into using AI overviews

Besides expanding with additional information, the extra controls also let you search for images related to the selected snippet. There's no denying that Google Search's AI overviews are here to stay. While those short point-wise summaries, rather than traditional search results, may suffice for basic queries, Google has been testing additional functions that let you do more with AI overviews. In late 2024, we learned that Google was experimenting with AI-generated snippets nested within AI overviews. These snippets would emerge when a portion of the text from the AI overviews was highlighted. And now, we're seeing more evidence of that evolving with the introduction of more useful controls. We're looking at a tip from Discord user RayDacted about new controls in AI overviews. According to the tip, Google is testing features to explain a particular chunk of text in the AI overview or search for images related to that specific highlight. There's a third button that lets you just copy the text, but its functionality may be redundant as the standard overlay also shows up on top when the text is selected. The last time we observed this behavior, selecting text would automatically display another context overlay on top of the existing AI overviews, and my colleague Stephen Schenck rightly referred to them as "AI overviews within AI overviews." The three buttons we have seen now give users more control over what they want to do with the highlight, even though the results may be the same as earlier. Interestingly, the nested snippet appears to display a shorter summary and provides more visibility to sources. Given the limited rollout of this functionality, we cannot comment on whether these changes are final or if we can expect more controls to be added to AI overviews by default. This functionality could be a part of Google's broader change to AI overviews, which may also include its plans to insert AI-generated summaries in your Discover feed, which we learned about earlier this week.

Get ready for more AI overviews inside your AI overviews

Google's 2024-released AI Overviews, whether you like them or not, are only going to be more visible from here on out. Despite a rocky start that saw the tool giving out incorrect and sometimes even potentially harmful information, the tool has stuck around. Initially limited to the US, the AI Overviews have now expanded to over 100 countries and territories globally. If phase one was to expand availability, phase two would be to improve functionality, and that's exactly what Google seems to be testing out right now. Related Google may be going all Xzibit on its AI Overviews Yo dawg... Posts 1 Back in November 2024, Google was spotted working on a feature that would let users select an excerpt from a generated AI Overview to get additional information. This would let users narrow down their search, essentially by generating a new AI Overview of their existing AI Overview. The feature hasn't since materialized, but it looks like Google's getting close. As highlighted by Android Authority quoting a reader tip, Google seems to be testing the feature out with a limited number of users, and it comes with additional controls this time around. Likely a mobile exclusive Source: Android Authority The option to further narrow down AI Overviews is believed to be a smartphone-exclusive feature. When it was first spotted, the feature would automatically trigger when a portion of the Overview's text was selected and highlighted. Now, Google seems to be giving users more control. As highlighted in the screenshots above, once available, selecting a portion of a generated AI Overview will bring up a new UI that takes up roughly 1/4th of the screen's bottom section. It will surface three new buttons, namely Explain this, Related images, and Copy Text. The new Related images search section is entirely new, while Explain this and Copy are existing functionalities that are now presented as dedicated buttons, essentially making it easier for users to choose their intended action when highlighting text. As mentioned earlier, Google seems to be testing the new feature in a very limited capacity. However, considering that there has been clear progress since the feature first leaked, it is highly plausible that the functionality might begin rolling out widely in the near future.