Google Tests AI Article Overviews in Google News

Google Experiments with AI-Powered News Overviews

Google has initiated a new pilot program, unveiling AI-driven article summaries on the Google News pages of select publications. This announcement was made by the search engine company on Wednesday.

Participating Publishers

Several prominent news organizations are involved in this initial phase, including Der Spiegel, El País, Folha, Infobae, Kompas, The Guardian, The Times of India, The Washington Examiner, and The Washington Post, among others.

Program Objectives

The core aim of this commercial partnership is to investigate the potential of AI to enhance audience engagement. Google detailed this in a recent blog post.

As part of this AI pilot, Google will collaborate with publishers to test innovative features within Google News.

Impact on User Experience and Revenue

The introduction of AI-generated article overviews intends to provide users with greater context before accessing the full article.

While these summaries might potentially reduce clicks on news articles, participating publications will receive direct financial compensation from Google, offsetting any potential traffic decline.

Limited Rollout

These AI-powered overviews will be exclusively visible on the Google News pages of participating publishers. They will not be displayed elsewhere within Google News or in standard Search results.

Previous AI News Summaries

This isn’t Google’s first foray into AI-driven news summarization. In July, the company launched AI summaries within Discover, Google’s news feed in its search application.

This update altered the feed’s presentation, replacing single headlines with logos from multiple news sources accompanied by an AI-generated summary citing those sources.

Audio News Briefings

Google is also exploring audio briefings as part of the pilot program, catering to users who prefer listening to news content.

These features will ensure clear source attribution and provide direct links to the original articles.

Collaboration for Enhanced Results

Furthermore, Google is partnering with organizations like Estadão, Antara, Yonhap, and The Associated Press to integrate real-time data and improve results within the Gemini app.

Ongoing Development and Collaboration

Google emphasized its commitment to evolving its products and incorporating feedback from stakeholders.

The company stated it is working with a diverse range of websites and content creators, from major news publishers to emerging voices.

“Preferred Sources” Feature Expansion

Alongside the AI pilot, Google announced the global launch of its “Preferred Sources” feature, initially released in the U.S. and India in August.

This feature empowers users to prioritize their favorite news websites and blogs within the Top Stories section of Google search results.

Global Availability

The “Preferred Sources” feature is now available to English-language users worldwide, with plans for expansion to all supported languages in the coming year.

Integration with Gemini App

Google will also showcase links from users’ news subscriptions within a dedicated carousel in the Gemini app in the coming weeks, followed by integration with AI Overviews and AI Mode.

Potential for Filter Bubbles

While these features enhance access to preferred news sources, they also carry the risk of creating ideological echo chambers, potentially limiting exposure to diverse viewpoints.

Improvements to AI Mode

Google is also increasing the number of inline links within AI Mode.

Additionally, it is introducing “contextual introductions” for embedded links, providing concise explanations of their relevance.