Google is considering charging for its powered AI search feature

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Since its debut in the early 2000s, Google Search has been available for free. However, the tech giant may be exploring additional revenue streams. Reports suggest that Google is considering introducing a paid version of its flagship product, Google Search.

Google primarily generates revenue through advertising and offers premium products like the Google One membership. Despite this, Google Search has remained free since its inception.

Amidst growing competition in artificial intelligence, companies are diversifying their product offerings. Google’s efforts with projects like Bard and Gemini are indicative of this trend.

In addition to these initiatives, Google is reportedly planning to launch an AI-powered search engine. The company is exploring ways to integrate AI capabilities into its premium subscription plans. Although Google already offers AI assistants in Gmail and Docs , these subscriptions do not currently enhance the search experience.

What is the purpose of Google’s paid AI-powered search engine?

The purpose of Google’s proposed paid AI-powered search engine is to provide users with enhanced search results. While Google has been testing AI-enhanced search results since May of last year, integrating AI capabilities into the primary search engine poses technical and financial challenges.

Google is currently in the investigative phase, and no decisions have been finalized. While Google has ruled out charging for its default search engine, users may need to subscribe to access an AI-powered search engine.

Concerns have been raised about the potential impact of Google’s AI-powered search engine on online publishers and advertisers. Directly displaying data from websites to users may affect publishers, while AI-generated responses could impact advertisers’ business models.

Despite these concerns, Google’s AI-powered search engine will continue to display ads, even on the premium model, to sustain its advertising revenue.

It remains to be seen how Google will implement the AI-based search engine and whether it will offer both free and paid alternatives.