Our industry is in a rapidly developing phase. There have been other "game changers", but this may be the most transformative yet. We are of course talking about the new era of AI.
I talk about this AI transformation every day with entrepreneurs all over Sweden. A few years ago, the conversations were about what AI is and how it works. Now they're about how to use AI as quickly as possible—to increase productivity, to help marketers find valuable customers, and to drive more profitability.
Larry Page once said, “The perfect search engine should give you the exact answer to what you're looking for.” That's what Google has focused on since its inception.
Trend 1: The "Exactly-what-I-want" search
With generative AI, it's now easier to find exactly what you're looking for, no matter how specific it is. Over the past six months, the volume of searches containing five or more words increased 1.5 times faster than shorter searches compared to the same period last year.
In the past, you might have searched for “storm kitchen,” compared prices and read reviews. Now you can search for "gas-powered storm kitchen for ultralight hikes". When the searches become more well-defined, Google can also more easily understand what the intention behind it is and help businesses appear in even more relevant searches
Trend 2: Complex searches become simple
Google can now handle more complex queries and help with planning searches that typically involve many steps. For example: "What are good options for a day out in Stockholm with the children?" Recommend some ice cream shops near each option.”
In the past, this would have involved multiple searches and trying to piece together all the information yourself. Now, with Gemini, this only takes seconds. And because it benefits from real-time information and expertise from around the web, the results – including ratings, reviews and opening hours – will be current and relevant.
Trend 3: Search beyond words
Sometimes it is easier and faster to use images you are looking for. 82 percent of consumers say they would find it helpful if AI allowed them to search for things that are hard to describe.
There are 12 billion visual searches made every month using Google Lens. Soon you'll also be able to search by video – thanks to Google's latest advances in video understanding – so you can really search anything you can see.
With innovations like Circle to Search, you can search anything on your screen with just a highlight and a tap. This allows users to easily get the information they need from their screens.
Trend 4: Search beyond answers
Sometimes people aren't looking for quick answers; they want to explore, discover and be inspired. Consumers turn to Google to explore options. For example, the search interest for “decorating ideas,” “best food recipes” and “indoor activities for rainy days” have seen incredible increases in search volumes year after year.
When people use Google search to get ideas, they get more than one AI-generated answer. They get an entire AI-structured page of inspiration, custom-built for them and their question.
Someone visiting Malmö, Skåne, can start with a broad, open search such as "fun places to eat in Malmö". Now they get an organized search page with different options that help them discover more and gain new perspectives. They can read or watch reviews about what customers have to say. Or explore ideas – like “sunset view spots” or “seafood plateau” – that they might never have thought of on their own.
Your ads will be an essential part of the new search experience – with even more ways for your business to be discovered.
But you can't talk about discovery without talking about YouTube. YouTube is a rapidly growing video platform in Sweden and is expected to become even more popular. For the creators at the heart of YouTube, generative AI is the next playground. It will help businesses and people to express their creativity to a whole different extent.
Google Search evolves, and so do the ads. Ads are more helpful than ever and are appearing in more places – be it Google Lens or Circle to Search.
We now have a suite of generative AI tools to choose from to help us plan, organize, produce and generate: Imagen 3, Google's most powerful text-to-image model yet; Music AI Sandbox, a playground for musical innovation; and Veo, a cutting-edge video generation model. Veo will be launched soon YouTube Shorts, opening up a whole new world of creative possibilities for businesses and content creators.
Just imagine: every content creator with AI in their pocket. That means more creators, more content that attracts more viewers which in turn leads to greater reach, engagement and ROI for businesses.
