Google calls the Search update the most important in the last 25 years. Take it with caution — it's the line every big-tech uses at a keynote — but the announced changes are substantial on two fronts: the search interface and the arrival of agents.
The "intelligent" search box
The new box expands dynamically as you type, recognizing that queries today are longer and more conversational. It accepts text, images, files, videos, and Chrome tabs as input. Suggestions are no longer simple autocomplete: they anticipate user intent, trying to guess what you're trying to do, not just what you're about to write. Rollout began on May 19 in all countries and languages where AI Mode is available.
Information agents
This is the piece that changes the product's nature most. Search stops being a feature you activate and becomes a service that works for you in the background. You create an information agent (for example: "alert me when something relevant comes out about X"), give it a scope, and the agent keeps monitoring the web — blogs, news sites, social posts, Google's fresh data — synthesizing intelligent updates for you with the ability to take action.
Information agents will arrive in summer and will be reserved to Google AI Pro and Ultra subscribers.
Under the hood: Gemini 3.5 Flash
The default model in AI Mode becomes Gemini 3.5 Flash, in all countries and for all users. It's the same logic that changed the ChatGPT experience when OpenAI replaced its default model: gains in speed and reasoning show up everywhere, even on trivial queries.