Google may be working on new AI-powered search engine

SAN FRANCISCO: Amidst rising competition from Microsoft and OpenAI, Google is reportedly developing an all-new AI-powered search engine, the media reported.

The company is currently in the early phases of developing a search service that aims to provide a highly personalised experience by anticipating the users' needs, reports Engadget.

However, the project has "no clear timetable".

The New York Times first reported the news.

Moreover, the report mentioned that Google is also developing a suite of new AI features for its existing search engine under the codename "Magi".

Among the features the tech giant is working on is a chatbot that can answer software engineering inquiries and create code snippets.

The company has also tested a function that would allow users to search for music via a chatbot conversation.

"We've been bringing AI to Google Search for years to not only dramatically improve the quality of our results, but also introduce entirely new ways to search, such as Lens and multisearch," a Google spokesperson was quoted as saying.

"We've done so in a responsible and helpful way that maintains the high bar we set for delivering quality information. Not every brainstorm deck or product idea leads to a launch, but as we've said before, we're excited about bringing new AI-powered features to Search, and will share more details soon," it added.

Other new features "in various stages of development" include a Chrome feature called "Searchalong", which will enable a chatbot to scan the webpage you're reading and provide contextual information, according to the report.

Further, the report said that Google plans to announce "Magi" next month before introducing additional new features sometime in the fall.