How to turn off AI overviews for Google search
Want the familiar Google search back? Here’s how you can get it. Whether you want it or not, Google’s AI Overviews are here to stay. There have been mixed responses to the AI-organized summaries that now appear at the top of your Google search results after you ask a question, leading Google to address the concerns.
AI overviews are here to stay
Initially, AI Overviews appeared only if you had signed up for Search Labs, which lets you participate in Google’s latest AI experiments. Now, the AI-created summaries have been pushed out to everyone in the US.
Google AI overview generates misleading responses
If you don’t see AI Overviews in Google yet, it’s just a matter of time. Google’s Gemini generative AI model powers these summaries, but Gemini — like others right now — is not always accurate. Overviews have already suggested eating pizza with glue and drinking urine to quickly pass a kidney stone.
What are Google Search AI Overviews?
AI Overviews are generated answers to the questions you ask on Google search. Google said Overviews would start appearing at the top of search starting May 14 whenever Google’s search systems determine that these types of AI-generative responses can quickly provide useful information.
For example, if you typed, “What’s the shortest war in history?” in Google search, you may see something about the Anglo-Zanzibar War of 1896, thanks to Overviews. Underneath the AI-generated summary, you’ll see links to all the resources used, which you can click to check out the websites where the information is pulled from.
Who has access to AI Overviews?
Google started testing AI Overviews in 2023 with a small group of people who signed up in Search Labs, where Google experiments with possible search capabilities. During the latest Google I/O conference, they announced that it would be rolling out AI Overviews to hundreds of millions of users in the US, with more countries coming soon. Google expects to bring AI Overviews to over a billion people by the end of this year.
Is there a way to turn off Google’s AI Overviews?
Now, to the important question: Is there any way to turn off Overviews in your search results?
AI Overviews is already turned off in Search Labs, and if anything, all we could do is boost AI Overviews to cover more search topics when we turn it on in Labs. On the Labs page, Google said, “Turning [the AI Overviews and more experiments] off does not disable Overviews in Search outside of Labs.”
If you enable the Overviews experimental setting, you can ask more complex questions in Google searches and receive fuller Overviews. You can ask something like, “Create a 5-day meal plan that includes blueberries,” and you’ll get a generated response. Great for people who love blueberries, but bad for people who just aren’t into AI.
Workarounds to avoid AI Overviews
Google may not give us an obvious way to turn off AI Overviews in Google search, but there are some workarounds.
- Use the Web tab: Whether you’re on mobile or a computer, use the Web tab that appears at the top of Google search results. If you don’t see it — it should be in there with the “All,” “News,” and “Images” tabs — scroll left or right until you do. You’ll still initially see an AI summary at the top, but this allows you to quickly go to a more traditional search, filled with only links. If you’re on a computer, there’s a way you can make the web tab the default option when you use Google Search online.
- Use another web browser: We didn’t receive AI Overviews for queries in Safari and Firefox. Unfortunately, this only works on your computer, not on mobile.
- Use a browser extension: If you’re a Chrome user and don’t want to use any other browser but also don’t want AI Overviews, use the Hide Google AI Overviews extension for Chrome. This extension removes all AI-generated summaries from your Google search results.
By using these workarounds, you can still enjoy a more traditional search experience without the interference of AI Overviews.
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