Since May of 2023, Google has been testing generative artificial intelligence features on their search engine. It is called SGE and every search made will be summarized by Google for users to get information faster without opening any website. Most recently, the Financial Times reported that Google has plans to charge for AI features in Google Search.
This payment is said to be part of the Google One AI Premium subscription which gives access to Gemini Advanced. Although it is a paid feature, users will still see ads on Google Search just like regular users. This Google Search subscription offer is said to have been developed by Google engineers but has not yet been approved by executives for launch.
At the time this article was written, Google SGE was still free to use. You can test this feature by signing up through the Google app or going to the Google Labs site. If Google Search had to be paid, would you subscribe to use a feature that reduces website traffic by up to 60%?