Google unveiled sweeping AI changes to Search alongside a new generation of smart glasses

Google has unveiled one of the biggest transformations in its history, reshaping its search engine with artificial intelligence while reviving its long-troubled ambitions in smart eyewear.

The announcements came at the company’s annual Google I/O developer conference in California, where executives laid out a future built around AI-powered search, autonomous digital agents and a fresh attempt to make intelligent glasses mainstream.

At the heart of the overhaul sits Google Search.

The company plans to make its search bar far more conversational, encouraging users to type longer, more detailed requests resembling natural human questions rather than traditional keyword-heavy searches. The new system leans heavily on Google’s latest artificial intelligence model, Gemini 3.5, unveiled alongside the changes.

Google executives described the shift as a fundamental evolution of how people interact with the world’s most-used search platform.

Elizabeth Reid, who oversees Google Search, called the redesign the most significant change to the product in nearly three decades. The updates began rolling out globally across desktop and mobile platforms. Search results will increasingly resemble AI-generated summaries packed with visuals, suggestions and interactive tools rather than the familiar list of blue links that defined the internet era.

Traditional search, however, is not disappearing completely.

Users who prefer the older experience will still be able to switch back to a classic web-link view through a dedicated “Web” tab.

Google’s AI ambitions stretch well beyond search results.

The company said Gemini 3.5 will predict longer text responses and power deeper interaction across its ecosystem. A search query could lead users directly into actions such as generating spreadsheets, organising schedules or creating calendar invitations without leaving Google’s environment. If users upload documents, photos or videos into Chrome’s search functions, the system may automatically activate AI mode.

Executives also revealed growing adoption figures.

According to Google, the Gemini app now attracts 900 million monthly users. The company noted that AI-mode search interactions have doubled every quarter since the feature launched a year ago, signalling rapid expansion in conversational search behaviour.

The company’s next push centres on autonomous AI agents.

Subscribers to premium AI plans will gain access to “information agents”, digital assistants designed to conduct detailed research, produce summaries and suggest action plans. A separate feature called Gemini Spark will pull information from services including Gmail and Google Calendar to help users organise travel, shopping, appointments and recurring tasks.

Google described its broader objective as building a “universal assistant” that remains personal, proactive and persistent.

But another announcement reignited memories of one of Silicon Valley’s most mocked experiments.

Google confirmed the return of smart glasses.

Working with partners including Samsung, Warby Parker and Gentle Monster, the company introduced “intelligent eyewear” scheduled for release later this year. The glasses will respond to Gemini voice commands while allowing users to capture photos and videos using built-in cameras.

The move revives a category Google once struggled to popularise.

Its original Google Glass launch in 2014 attracted widespread criticism and ridicule, with users mocked publicly and the product withdrawn not long afterwards. Despite that failure, changing industry attitudes have revived interest in wearable computing.

Competition has intensified, too.

Meta has already pushed deeper into the sector through its camera-equipped smart glasses partnership with Ray-Ban maker EssilorLuxottica. Google revealed it is also developing a second smart-glasses concept featuring an in-lens display known internally as Project Aura.

Additional announcements at the conference included cybersecurity-focused AI tools and coding features powered by Gemini.

Taken together, the updates signal a company trying to redefine how billions of people search, work, communicate and interact with technology while taking another gamble on a product category that once became a cautionary tale.