Google expanding AI-powered SGE to some users that didn’t sign up

Ben Schoon | Mar 25 2024 - 10:15 am PT

Google first announced its AI-powered makeover for Search, the “Search Generative Experience” (SGE), last year and let users start testing it, but now Google seems to be moving things up as users who didn’t sign up for SGE are being given AI-enhanced results.

For the past several months, access to SGE has been available through Google Search Labs. The barrier of entry is very low, and it’s led to a lot of folks using the tool. Just recently, Google’s new Head of Search said that SGE has already handled “billions of queries.”

But, to date, the experience has still required that manual opt-in.

Now, as SearchEngineLand first reported, Google is starting to show SGE AI-powered overviews to users who have not signed up. Google has since confirmed the test is happening on a “small percentage of search traffic” on “certain categories,” but only in the United States. This also includes users who are not logged into a Google account.

Some of the “certain” queries that get these responses include more complex questions, with one example being “how do I get marks off painted walls.”

Google said that it expanded SGE access “to get feedback and learn how a more general population will find this technology helpful.”

There’s no word yet on Google’s plans to expand SGE to all users, but it was teased just last week that there is “more coming soon.”