Google’s big announcement

When you think of searching for something in Google, you probably imagine typing your query, then the iconic results page with ten clickable links appears, and you decide which site link to click on. By delivering valuable search results Google has built its monopolistic empire, but at least it kept sending traffic to the content creators – other websites. Google repeatedly demonstrated that it can not be trusted with this power, for instance when it removed Tuta from its search results. But now it’s about to get even worse.

Just last year, people online were looking for ways to easily turn off AI Search Mode in Google, with many sharing their frustrations towards this excessive AI integration. Unfortunately, Google is further advancing this.

At the I/O conference, Google unveiled some big changes to Google Search: it’s upgrading Search with Gemini 3.5 Flash, a new model in AI mode. This introduces search agents which you can create and manage for your tasks directly in Search, and even agentic coding in Search. But the biggest change, which the tech giant describes as the, “biggest upgrade in over 25 years” is the intelligent AI-powered Search Box.

With this update, when searching you’ll have a bigger area to ask more detailed questions. Moreover, the AI is able to anticipate your search intent and create the questions you want to ask with its AI-powered suggestions. You will also be able to search in different modes – like with images, texts, files, and videos.

Google has designed the new Search to be easier to continue conversations in its AI mode. When you ask a question, you get an AI overview followed by a search box which lets you ask a follow up question directly in the overview section. The Silicon Valley tach giant announced in its blog post:

We’re also making it even simpler to continue the conversation with Search. You can easily ask a follow-up question right from an AI Overview, and flow into a conversational back and forth with AI Mode. Your context stays with you, and as you explore more deeply, the links and supporting articles get even more relevant.”

Google’s AI-powered “Intelligent Search Box” is currently rolling out in all countries where AI Mode in Search is available. Google has not said that it’s removing the traditional search results we’re used to, but it is now showing more AI generated summaries at the top of the page (where everyone looks first). And it is designed to encourage follow up questions.

Simply put: The Big Tech is changing traditional search from lists of links to a search experience that’s more like using an AI assistant. When you search in Google, its new Intelligent search box is designed to keep you searching and interacting with its AI instead of clicking on independent web links.

In theory this sounds amazing, but is it really?

In 1998, Google Search was released, and by the 2000s it became the world’s leading search engine which stood out for its PageRanking algorithm, simple layout, and relevant search results. But like Gmail and other Google products, Google Search is no longer what it used to be - now it’s full of ads, you’re tracked whenever you do anything, and it’s integrating its Gemini AI wherever possible - even in your mailbox! These are just a few reasons people are choosing to DeGoogle and switch to better privacy focused alternatives. While AI-enthusiasts may think that conversing with Google’s AI is a great way to search and Google encourages users to use it - it’s not worth ignoring what this new Google AI Search could lead to.

Less traffic to the open web

Originally Google Search was the directory which sent you to different websites, but now it scrapes these websites for relevant information, summarizes them, and then presents the results in the AI summary. Yes, this neat little summary is convenient, but it is designed to keep you interacting with Google – not the content creators. As a result, you do not need to visit the original websites - which is killing the open web.

Because fewer people are clicking on website links, we have to think about what will eventually happen to the people, companies, and organizations behind these sites. These websites now receive less traffic, and all the hard work they put into their website is unnoticed - because Google’s AI reaps its profits from their content.

According to The Economist, DotDash Meredith, the company that owns websites like People and Food & Wine, three years ago its websites received over 60% of its traffic from Google. But today, this has dropped to the mid 30s%.

This also raises big ethical questions about how tech giants like Google deal with user data and published information on the internet: With the boom of the free and open web, no one considered that one day the Big Techs they relied on would vacuum up everything they had released online to build and develop AI models, which now steal other’s businesses.

Google’s AI algorithms dictate what you see

The second issue is that Google’s AI algorithms choose what you see. People are presented with a summary which naturally they will read first. Algorithms choosing what to display already happens when we use social platforms, like Instagram, and in Google Search it’s not new, but before the introduction of the AI summary you would choose the most eye grabbing headline and click to visit that page.

Ads in AI summaries

The fact that Google already places ads in AI summaries is worrying, but the last sentence is even more. Does this mean that eventually Google could place ads in AI overviews for sensitive verticals like politics and healthcare? Screenshot: Google Ads Help.

Ads in Google’s AI summaries is another topic on its own, and this is nothing new - for example, ChatGpt is also testing ads. Google chooses the information you read in summaries and the ads it shows you. What is concerning is that upon reading the Ads help: Ads in AI Overviews one line really stands out, “Currently, we don’t show ads in AI Overviews for sensitive verticals like adult, alcohol, gambling, finance, healthcare, politics, and more.” Does this mean that in the future there’s a possibility that Google would go as far to place ads in sensitive AI summaries like on politics and healthcare?

Because AI is rapidly developing and people are using it more than ever before, we need to be aware of the risks involved when using it, and the ethical considerations.

Ditch Google AI overview & support the web

Luckily, if you want a search experience similar to the old Google without AI, there are some alternatives you can opt for, like DuckDuckGo, which offers a no-AI search page you can find here: noai.duckduckgo.com. This allows you to search the web without the annoying AI features.

In response to Google’s constant AI push in its search engine, DuckDuckGo is becoming more and more popular. On May 25th, the Google Search and browser alternative reported on X that its week over week installs increased by 30% in the US, and a DuckDuckGo spokesperson told ZDNET that traffic to its no-AI search page had increased by 22.7% on average week-over-week with an increased 27.7% on May 24th.

DuckDuckGo’s major increase is a sign of a bigger trend that we, too, at Tuta have experienced: People are deciding to switch to alternatives to Big Tech and choose tech tools that do not push unwanted features like AI and ads, and have better data privacy and protection measures in place. While tech giant’s like Meta and Google continue to push for AI - and in the case of Google Search - kill the open web, it’s very important that we continue to say NO to invasive technologies and unethical tech practices because together we can make the web a better place.

You’ll find a lot of alternatives to Google Search on our huge list to deGoogle!