Google’s making its new generative AI tools available to more users, with the expansion of its Search Labs early access program. The expansion enables people to try out its AI elements within Search – and also highlights some interesting use cases for product discovery in the app.

Google had initially resisted jumping into the generative AI waters as OpenAI’s tools gained traction, with Google’s view being that such tools are still too prone to errors, and could end up spreading misinformation as a result. But now, with OpenAI partnering with Microsoft, that’s essentially forced Google’s hand – though it is still being relatively cautious in how it implements these new elements, and integrates them with its current Search and ad offerings.

Within the new Search Labs experience – accessible by tapping on the beaker icon in the top right (to approved users) – searchers will be able to get more contextual information on queries, based on the terms that they enter.

As per Google:

“The new generative AI powered Search experience will help you take some of the work out of searching, so you can understand a topic faster, uncover new viewpoints and insights and get things done more easily. So instead of asking a series of questions and piecing together that information yourself, Search now can do some of that heavy lifting for you.”

So it’s much like ChatGPT, in that it will provide you with an overview of a topic, as opposed to just the search matches. However, Google’s looking to integrate these results into its regular SERPs, meaning that generative AI results won’t replace traditional Search, as such, but will offer additional pointers and guidance within the process.

Which also relates to shopping.

As you can see in this example, with Google’s new generative search pointers, the results will display additional contextual notes in-stream, which could help to streamline your discovery process.

For brands, that could make it more important to ensure that you’re addressing long-tail queries with explainers and info on your site in order to better align with more specific matches. As you can also see in this example above, unlike ChatGPT, Google’s still looking to highlight relevant web links – so Google’s essentially looking to remain a key driver of referral traffic, while also aligning with advancing generative AI trends.

It’s an interesting approach, which will keep Google’s systems aligned with its core business, and could end up driving more benefit, for both Google and Search users, in the long term.

By ensuring that relevant links are still the focus, that also provides more means to double-check and confirm the info being generated, which could actually be more beneficial than the ChatGPT Q and A approach. Within that process, ChatGPT presents its responses as fact, when they’re often not – while Google will still be looking to refer users to third-party sources, even with its generative AI prompts.

It’ll be interesting to see how the system develops. You can sign up for the Search Labs waitlist at labs.google.com/search.

Florida Governor Ron DeSantis. – © AFP Patrick T. FALLON

Glenn CHAPMAN and Julie JAMMOT

By hosting Republican Ron DeSantis’s presidential campaign launch, Elon Musk sets up Twitter as a challenger to Fox News, but doubt remains that the right-wing pivot is a winning ticket for the platform.

DeSantis is considered a credible challenger to seizing the Republican nomination from frontrunner Donald Trump in the 2024 election, and his tie-up with Musk’s Twitter has generated buzz.

DeSantis’s choice of outlet for his Wednesday announcement follows news that ousted Fox News star Tucker Carlson will move his show to Twitter, and Daily Wire, a conservative news outlet, has also said Twitter will host its video and podcasts.

Musk has touted the events as his effort to turn Twitter into a marketplace of ideas and help turn his roller-coaster-ride buyout of the social media giant last year into a money-winning proposition.

“You’ve got to get people on the platform, you’ve got to get them spending time on the platform, you’ve got to get them to come back to the platform multiple times a day,” said Andrew Selepak, assistant media professor at the University of Florida.

“For Musk, he’s got to find big name users who will come and create content on Twitter.”

But the problem is that Musk is increasingly limiting himself to the right wing, which may scare away a chunk of advertisers that are willing to pay to display on Twitter.

“If it becomes an entirely right leaning platform, then yes, you would lose audience, you would lose advertising,” said Selepak.

– ‘I don’t care!’ –

Musk is being driven by two contradictory forces. On the one hand, he would like to see Twitter win him back his $44 billion investment and to do that he will have to keep advertisers on board.

But on the other hand, Musk wants to remain Musk.

Major advertisers fled in droves after his takeover, unimpressed by the tycoon’s mercurial behavior and the firing of thousands of people, many of whom scrubbed away bad content from Twitter.

Initially, Musk set out to do without them, plugging an amped-up subscription service that would compensate for the loss of revenue.

He also welcomed back banned accounts and shooed away the media establishment by branding top-tier news groups as state-affiliated media or removing authentication for the accounts of journalists and celebrities.

But with his push to build a subscriber base flailing, Musk tacitly admitted defeat by poaching Linda Yaccarino as CEO.

Yaccarino is one of the world’s best-respected ad executives, who built deep relationships with the world’s biggest brands as ad boss for NBCUniversal, the media group.

But Musk still firmly insists on maintaining his free-wheeling inclinations that can include dabbling in conspiracy theories and far right tropes.

Asked in a recent interview if he thought about the business consequences of his uncontrolled behavior online, a clearly provoked Musk answered: “I don’t care!”

– ‘Anything is achievable’ –

Musk’s critics believe that refusal to stay above the fray will deny him the trust of blue-chip advertisers.

“The people that Musk is bringing on board are among the most disturbingly bigoted forces on the right,” said Matt Gertz, senior fellow at the left-leaning Media Matters group.

“The Yaccarino hiring and this are contradictory — these are moves you make if you want to cultivate a subscriber base of far right extremists, not if you want to make money off of advertising,” Gertz said.

Others, however, point out that conservatives have managed to carve out a way to make big money from media.

“Profits have always been the priority …(and Musk) is tapping into a model that has been successful on talk radio and Fox News,” said Kathryn C. Brownell, assistant professor at Purdue University.

Moreover, Fox News dominance of US TV news is currently in a rough patch.

If it doesn’t work, Musk will more than likely have to fork out more money to back Twitter.

“Anything is achievable when you’re a billionaire in that regard. If he wants to pour another $40 billion into creating Twitter News, that’s the only way it could really work,” said Roy Gutterman, Syracuse University professor and director at the Tully Center for Free Speech.

“To have even a quasi news outlet, you’re still going to need a pretty costly infrastructure…Fox News didn’t develop overnight,” he added.

Tesla earlier this year opened up its Supercharger network to outside automakers, although it has only committed to opening 3,500 current and future charging stalls to non-Tesla EVs. To-date, the automaker has only opened a handful of stations to non-Teslas.

Musk said the price for adapters for Ford EVs starting next spring would not be “cost-prohibitive,” and likely be in the “hundreds of dollars” range.

What remains unclear is how exactly Ford’s current third-party network of roughly 84,000 chargers, including 10,000 fast-chargers, would interact with Ford EVs built with the NACS charge port starting in 2025. A spokesperson said it’s expected the third-party charging stations would eventually offer plugs that would connect with NACS ports, although it’s unclear who would pay for it.

“Tesla has led the industry in creating a large, reliable and efficient charging system and we are pleased to be able to join forces in a way that benefits customers and overall EV adoption,” Marin Gjaja, chief customer officer, Ford Model e, said in a statement. “The Tesla Supercharger network has excellent reliability and the NACS plug is smaller and lighter. Overall, this provides a superior experience for customers.”

Developing appreciation

Farley said he developed an appreciation for Tesla’s charging network while on a family vacation last year.

“My kids kept looking at me and going ‘Hey dad, there’s another Supercharger, can we stop there?’ and I was like ‘No, we have to go here behind this other building,’” he said. “It became obvious to me the job your team had done and what it means to customers.”

Musk and Farley, who had as many as 21,000 listeners on their Thursday evening announcement, said they’d continue to explore ways to collaborate to increase EV adoption.
The tie-up is notable given the pair’s sometimes-chippy past.

Farley and Ford are known to take jabs at Musk and Tesla in speeches, on Twitter and in commercials.

For example, when the company launched its BlueCruise driver-assist technology, Farley tweeted “we tested it in the real world, so our customers don’t have to,” a shot at Tesla’s AutoPilot technology.

Musk clapped back with a video snippet of the movie “Tommy Boy,” featuring Farley’s late cousin, the comedian Chris Farley.

One of Ford’s recent commercials made fun of those who “fly away on their own personal space ships when things get hard,” a reference to Musk and other billionaires’ attempts at commercial space companies.