Google tests real-time AI voice chats in Search

Google is building Search Live into AI Mode, allowing you to have a back-and-forth voice conversation with the company’s AI chatbot right from its search engine. The test, which is rolling out now to Labs users in the US, currently doesn’t support camera-sharing, but Google plans to add the capability in the “coming months.”

Search Live lets you interact with the company’s “custom” version of Gemini and search the web in real time. The feature currently lives in the Google app on Android and iOS, where it takes things a step further by giving you the ability to point your camera at something and ask questions about it out loud.

Google first announced plans to bring Search Live to AI Mode, the AI-powered search feature that just rolled out to everyone in the US, last month. It’s all part of Google’s larger transformation of its search engine, which is also experimenting with putting podcast-like Audio Overviews into your search results.

You can try out Search Live in AI Mode by opting into the AI Mode experiment in Google Labs. From there, head to the Google app on Android or iOS and tap the new “Live” icon. You can then ask a question out loud, like “What are some tips for preventing a linen dress from wrinkling in a suitcase?” The AI chatbot will provide an audio response that you can reply to with another related question, like “What should I do if it still wrinkles?” Search Live will also present you with relevant links as you chat.

Other AI companies have spent time building out voice modes for their AI models as well, with OpenAI launching an Advanced Voice Mode in ChatGPT last year and Anthropic rolling out a voice mode for its Claude app in May. Apple is also working on an “LLM Siri,” but its rollout was delayed because the company wasn’t able to “achieve the reliability” that it wanted, according to Apple software SVP Craig Federighi.

Google says Search Live operates in the background, letting you continue your conversation with the chatbot when navigating to other apps. You can also tap the “transcript” button to see a text version of the response and reply by typing. Google will save past Search Live conversations in your AI Mode history.