(Credit: Google/PCMag)
The AI revolution stops for no one, particularly at Google, which now claims to be in its "Gemini era." After changing the name of its AI from Bard to Gemini, Google rebranded its Search Generative Experience (SGE) as "AI Overviews" at I/O 2024 and rolled it out more broadly.
AI Overviews seek to answer your questions directly on the search results page. The idea is to get you the information you need as fast as possible; no need to click through a bunch of blue links. One example: adding full recipes to search results.
AI Overviews are a work in progress. They've produced numerous factual errors, forcing Google to remove false information, change its algorithms, and add sources. Unfortunately, there's no way to turn them off, but you can make a few tweaks so AI-infused answers are less prominent.
Trick Google Into Removing AI
Out of all the ways to remove AI Overviews from Google, this might be the easiest and most repeatable method yet. All you have to do is use the NOT (-) operator that modifies search to exclude certain parameters.
In this example, searching who owns Facebook will generate an overlay, as seen above. However, by adding something like -AI at the end of the search query, the AI Overview will be stripped from the results page.
This isn't because Google added an AI kill switch in its code. Rather, the modifier is breaking Google's algorithm to surface the AI overlay. The same results can be found if you add random characters at the end, such as -i or -efewg, but -AI is more fun.
Switch Back to Web Results
Google has a new search filter called Web, which essentially returns you to traditional search results. If AI snippets are annoying, get rid of them by clicking the Web filter underneath the search bar. If it isn't visible, click the More button and select it from the menu that appears.
Once the Web filter is selected, the AI Overview panel will be removed from Google search results. Unfortunately, you can't set it to be the default view for searches, meaning you'll have to manually choose the tab each time Google serves up an AI result.
Also keep in mind that this filter isn't a magic button that brings back the old Google. It's simply meant to be for web links what the Image filter does for images. That means YouTube previews and search snippets won't appear when this filter is used—it's web links only all the way down. Still, it's nice to have any reprieve when Google is trying to stuff AI into any and every feature.
Use or Create a Proxy Site
When you click the Web tab, Google adds a short string of characters to the URL, which signals it should only show you web links. You can do this manually by adding &udm=14 to the end of a search results URL. If that seems too tedious, the proxy site udm14.com works as a Google search bar with AI Overviews stripped out. Search whatever you want without having to worry about adding a random string of characters.
As Ars Technica notes, a proxy site can potentially read your search queries, so consider your comfort level before proceeding. If you don't want to risk it, this website has instructions on how to set Google Web as your default search engine in Chrome and Firefox. The process differs depending on your device but involves creating a custom site search that you set as your default.
Turn Off Experimental Features
Another option is to try and undo some of what you may have already enabled. Google houses experimental features in Google Labs, which you can access via labs.google.com or by clicking the flask icon on the top-right corner of Google.com while signed into a personal account.
It's possible you turned these features on and forgot about them. Head to the Search Labs web page, and you'll be prompted to either turn AI Overviews on or be see a toggle where you can Turn this experiment on or off, though Google notes that "turning this off does not disable AI Overviews in Search outside of Labs."
Under AI tools while browsing, you can turn off the option to "Browse web pages with AI-powered tools. Understand and quickly find key points. See questions answered on the web page and jump to the relevant section to learn more."
Mobile users have a built-in shortcut to the Search Labs page. Just tap the flask icon in the top-left corner of a Google search result page to see experimental AI features. Tap on each feature and turn them off individually.
Everything Announced at Google I/O
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