At its “Search On” livestream event on Wednesday, Google has revealed the new advancements coming to search, including the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in search & other Google products, “giving people new ways to search & explore information in more natural & intuitive ways”. It was earlier this year at the Google I/O, that the company had announced it reaching a critical milestone for understanding information with Multitask Unified Model, or MUM for short.
At the Search On event, Google shared an early look at what will be possible with MUM.
Google search, as we know it, the traditional version, is undergoing a sea change. In the next few months, Google will introduce a new way to search visually, with the ability to ask questions about what you see.
Here are a couple of examples forwarded by Google of what will be possible with MUM:
With this new capability, you can tap on the Lens icon when you’re looking at a picture of a shirt, & ask Google to find you the same pattern — but on another article of clothing, like socks. This helps when you’re looking for something that might be difficult to describe accurately with words alone. You could type “white floral Victorian socks,” but you might not find the exact pattern you’re looking for. By combining images & text into a single query, we’re making it easier to search visually & express your questions in more natural ways.
Google has also explained how it was applying AI advances like MUM to redesign Google Search, & make it more natural & intuitive.
First, Google was making it easier to explore & understand new topics with “Things to know.” Say, for example, a searcher wants to decorate his apartment, & so is interested in learning more about creating acrylic paintings.
If he searches for “acrylic painting,” Google understands how people typically explore this topic, & shows the aspects people are likely to look at first. For example, Google can identify more than 350 topics related to acrylic painting, & help the searcher find the right path to take.
Google announced it would be launching this feature in the coming months. In the future, MUM will unlock deeper insights you might not have known to search for — like “how to make acrylic paintings with household items” — & connect you with Content on the Web that you wouldn’t have otherwise found.
Video Search To Get Even Better
Google already uses advanced AI systems to identify key moments in videos, like the winning shot in a basketball game, or steps in a recipe. The search engine was now taking this a step further, introducing a “new experience” that identifies related topics in a video, with links to easily dig deeper & learn more.
MUM will be able to show related topics that aren’t explicitly mentioned in the video, based on the advanced understanding of information in the video. The 1st version of this feature will roll out in the coming weeks.
Image credit: Google
