5 ways to get real-time help by going Live with Search

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Today, Search Live has officially launched in English in the U.S. — no Labs opt-in required. When you go Live with Search, you can have an interactive voice conversation in AI Mode and share your phone’s camera feed. This means Search can see what your camera sees, respond to your questions in real time and connect you with helpful web links to dive even deeper.

To get started, just open the Google app (Android and iOS) and tap the new Live icon under the search bar. You can start asking your questions out loud and enable video input to share visual context from your camera feed.

Or if you’re already pointing your camera with Google Lens, simply select the new Live option at the bottom of the screen. Camera sharing will be enabled by default, so you can have an instant back-and-forth conversation about whatever you see in front of you.

Ready to try it out? Here are five ways you can use this new capability in Search for fast, real-time help, at home or on the go:

1) Explore while you travel

Imagine you’re on vacation and getting ready at the hotel before a day of exploration. You can go Live with Search to have a hands-free conversation about the neighborhoods you want to visit, all while you finish applying your sunscreen. And once you’re out and about, you can fire up Live and activate your camera to ask about anything you see.

2) Try a new hobby

When you need help picking up a new skill — like crafting the perfect cup of matcha — consider Search Live your very own expert advisor. Point your camera at the equipment in your matcha set and ask what each tool is used for. Or get quick advice on which ingredients you can substitute if you’re looking for low-sugar or dairy-free alternatives for a matcha latte.

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Try AI Mode in Spanish today.

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AI Mode in Google Search is starting to roll out globally in Spanish today.

This brings our most powerful AI search experience to Spanish speakers around the world. Now, even more people can ask their most complex questions and get a helpful response in AI Mode with links to explore further on the web.

Try out AI Mode at google.com/ai. We look forward to hearing your feedback.

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Catch up with the creators and publishers you care about on Discover

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Discover is your home in the Google app to catch up on your interests and the world. Today, we’re introducing new content, formats and features so you can easily explore content from your favorite voices and publishers, wherever they post.

Find more types of content from platforms you love, in one place

It’s often hard to keep up with all the articles, videos and social posts, especially across many different sources and platforms. That’s why we’re bringing this info together in one convenient spot. In the coming weeks, you’ll start to see more types of content in Discover from publishers and creators across the web, such as posts from X and Instagram and YouTube Shorts, with more platforms to come. In our research, people told us they enjoyed seeing a mix of content in Discover, including videos and social posts, in addition to articles.

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Developing a new partnership to combat non-consensual intimate imagery on Search

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We understand how distressing the spread of non-consensual intimate imagery (NCII) is for those affected by this form of abuse. That’s why we have long invested in ways to protect people from this content on Search. Today, we’re deepening our investment in fighting NCII by developing a new partnership with StopNCII.org, which is part of the UK-based charity South West Grid for Learning (SWGfL). This partnership will build on our existing protections to create more scalable solutions for victims affected by this content.

Our existing tools allow people to request the removal of NCII from Search, and we’ve continued to launch ranking improvements to reduce the visibility of this type of content. We have also heard from survivors and advocates that given the scale of the open web, there’s more to be done to reduce the burden on those who are affected by it. Over the next few months, we will begin using StopNCII’s hashes, which are digital fingerprints of images and videos, to proactively identify and remove content which violates our policy against NCII.

StopNCII.org helps adults protect their private images from being shared online without their permission. Adults concerned about intimate image abuse can use StopNCII.org to create a unique identifier (also known as a “hash” or digital fingerprint) representing their intimate imagery. These hashes are shared with participating companies, who can use them to detect corresponding imagery that violates their NCII policy and remove it from their platform or service.

As part of our long-term commitment to creating a safer online environment, we look forward to bringing together policymakers, industry leaders and civil society at today’s NCII London Summit to help to continue the dialogue about how we can best empower survivors and work together to combat this issue across the web.

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We’re launching a new Google app for Windows experiment in Labs.

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Today, we’re launching a new experimental Google app for Windows in Labs to help you find what you need, faster.

Now you can search without switching windows or interrupting your flow. Whether you’re writing in a doc or in the middle of a game, just press Alt + Space to instantly search for information from your computer files, installed apps, Google Drive files — and of course, the web.

With Google Lens built in, you can select and search anything on your screen, making it easy to translate images or text, get help with homework problems and more. You can also get deeper AI-powered responses in AI Mode and keep exploring with follow-up questions and helpful links.

Try it for yourself by opting into the experiment in Labs.

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How Simplify in the Google app makes complex text easier to understand

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Its helpfulness lies in what it doesn’t do. Summaries cut details out, and explanations might add new context. Simplify does neither. It focuses exclusively on rephrasing for clarity, ensuring the original meaning, details and nuance remain intact.

“Summarization tools aim to condense an article to its main topics, often sacrificing details for brevity,” says Sho Fujiwara, a product manager who helped develop Simplify. “Simplify focuses on making specific passages easier to understand without losing crucial information. This means a simplified version of selected text can sometimes actually be longer than the original.”

Starting Simplify

The path to Simplify began in the specialized world of medicine, where no detail should be spared. “Doctors sometimes use language that’s purposefully obscured to reduce patient anxiety or preserve privacy,” says Diego Ardila, a Google Research software engineer. “They might say, ‘The patient is undergoing emesis,’ which just means they’re vomiting. Sometimes there’s a use for that inside a hospital, but other times it actually gets in the way.”

The team built an internal simplification demo, and started testing it on text outside of medicine. “We found that it just kept working because the underlying AI models are general-purpose,” Diego says. “Seeing its potential for broader applications, we shared it with other teams.”

That demo caught the eye of the iOS Google app team. “The user benefit was immediately apparent,” Sho says. “It performed exceptionally well on technical subjects, but its effectiveness on non-technical topics — like an online discussion about basketball filled with slang — really convinced us of its wider value for anyone exploring unfamiliar subjects.”

Finding fidelity with help from AI

From there, the challenge was to turn a research prototype into a feature for millions. The team focused on fidelity: The model had to rewrite complex ideas without losing the original meaning or omitting critical details. How do you teach AI to do that?

The answer was to have another, more advanced AI act as its teacher. Instead of manually writing rules to define an effective simplification, the team built an automated feedback loop. One Gemini model would attempt to simplify a passage, and a second “evaluator” model would grade how well it preserved the original meaning. That critique was then fed back to the first model, which used it to improve. After repeating this process 824 times, the model effectively trained itself to master the art of simplification.

That training paid off: In research testing, people found the simplified text significantly more helpful than the original text, and better retained the information.

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The latest AI news we announced in August

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General summary

Google made many AI advancements in August. You can now use AI Mode in Search in more countries and Deep Think in the Gemini app. Google also released new Pixel hardware with advanced AI features and made AI learning tools free for college students.


Summaries were generated by Google AI. Generative AI is experimental.

Shakespeare-ish

From Google’s labs, AI news takes flight,
With updates shared for all to see the light.
New search modes bloom, with agents at your call,
And Pixel’s power answers every thrall.

DeepMind’s creations, images so grand,
While students learn, with AI close at hand.
New coding tools, for tasks both big and small,
And Genie’s world, where dreams can enthrall.

So use these gifts, with purpose clear and bright,
To shape the world, and banish darkest night.
For Google’s aim, with every line and code,
Is better lives, along a helpful road.


Summaries were generated by Google AI. Generative AI is experimental.

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Google Doodles show how AI Mode can help you learn.

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Every day, students around the world search to learn and explore. This week on our Google homepage, Doodles will feature three topics people frequently search for information about during the school year: quadratic equations, photosynthesis and DNA. Clicking on the Doodles will take you directly to AI Mode, where you can continue exploring and learning about these complex topics.

With AI Mode, our most powerful AI search experience, you can ask whatever’s on your mind and get detailed explanations. You can also follow up, verify information and dig deeper with helpful links to content across the web. Find AI Mode as a tab in Search or access it in the Google app for Android or iOS.

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Ready, set, jet: Trends and tips for 2025 holiday travel

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Get insights on booking the cheapest flights

Whether you’re visiting family or looking for an overseas getaway, saving money on your holiday travel is always a great feeling. And with Google Flights, there are lots of different ways to find a great deal on airfare, like the new AI-powered Flight Deals tool or long-time favorites like price tracking alerts and the Explore map.

For many travelers, a big question is whether to book flights ASAP or wait to see if prices go down. In fact, searches for “best time to book flights” reached an all-time high in the U.S. this past summer. Usually it’s best to book flights on the early side, especially if your plans aren’t very flexible. But if scoring cheaper airfare is your number one goal, there are two ways you can use historical patterns to your advantage.

First, when you have a specific itinerary in mind, Google Flights can tell you when prices are expected to be lowest for booking your chosen dates and destination. Just look for the “cheapest time to book” insights under the top search results.

The other option is to consider the more generalized guidance from our 2025 insights on the best time to book, which we’ve just updated based on four years of aggregated Google Flights data

. For each scenario below, we’re listing out when average prices have been lowest for trips departing from U.S. airports, relative to the departure date.

  • Domestic flights: The lowest prices have been 39 days before departure (23-51 days is the low price range).
  • International flights: The lowest prices have been 49 days or more before departure. If you’re traveling abroad, don’t delay and book early!
  • Thanksgiving: The lowest prices have been 35 days before departure (24-59 days is the low price range). If you want to fly right before or after Thanksgiving, you’ll probably find the cheapest options in October.
  • Christmas: The lowest prices have been 51 days before departure (32-73 days is the low price range). So if you plan to travel for Christmas, the best bargains can usually be found when booking anytime mid-October through mid-November.
  • Spring break: The lowest prices for trips in March or April have been 43 days before departure (28-61 days is the low price range).
  • Summer vacation: The lowest prices for trips in July or August have been 21 days before departure (14-43 days is the low price range).
  • Trips to Europe: Similar to the general advice for international travel, the lowest prices for trips to Europe have been 48 days or more before departure, so you probably shouldn’t wait for prices to drop.
  • Trips to Mexico or the Caribbean: The lowest prices have been 50 days before departure (26-79 days is the low price range). Unlike Europe and the broader international trend, you might be able to save on travel to Mexico or the Caribbean if you book during the sweet spot.

Want some more tips on how to save? It’s worth knowing that you won’t save much by booking on any particular day of the week. Tuesday has been cheapest, but only 1.3% cheaper than Sunday, the most expensive day.

The cheapest days to travel are still Monday through Wednesday (about 13% cheaper than flying over the weekend). And finally, taking a layover helps you save about 22% on average, versus flying nonstop.

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AI Mode is now available in five new languages around the world.

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Starting today, we’re bringing AI Mode, our most powerful AI search experience, to five new languages for users around the globe: Hindi, Indonesian, Japanese, Korean, and Brazilian Portuguese.

Building a truly global Search goes far beyond translation — it requires a nuanced understanding of local information. With the advanced multimodal and reasoning capabilities of our custom version of Gemini 2.5 in Search, we’ve made huge strides in language understanding, so our most advanced AI search capabilities are locally relevant and useful in each new language we support.

With this expansion, more people can now use AI Mode to ask complex questions in their preferred language, while exploring the web more deeply. Try AI Mode at google.com/ai.

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