Google looks to improve search with 'Search On'

This week, Google hosted Search On, where the company announced the latest ways it is harnessing the power of AI to help people understand the world around them.

In Georgia, the top three most searched song lyrics over the last 6 months have been for WAP, We Paid, and Savage. Now, instead of just searching lyrics, you can hum, whistle or sing a melody to Google to solve your earworm. On your mobile device, tap the mic icon in the Google search bar and say “what's this song?” or click “Search a song,” and start humming for 10-15 seconds. On Google Assistant, simply say, “Hey Google, what’s this song?” and then hum the tune.

Since 2018, we’ve been working on the Data Commons Project, an open knowledge database of statistical data started in collaboration with the U.S. Census, Bureau of Labor Statistics, World Bank and many others.

Bringing these datasets together was a first step, and now we’re making this information more accessible and useful through Google Search. Now when you ask a question like “how many people work in Atlanta,” we use natural language processing to map your search to one specific set of the billions of data points in Data Commons to provide the right stat in a visual, easy to understand format.

Improvements in Google Maps that help you navigate your world and get things done. From an expansion of live busyness information to millions more places, to details about the health and safety precautions local businesses are taking during COVID-19, to the upcoming ability for people globally to use Live View, a feature that uses augmented reality to help you find your way and learn about the world around you.

New advancements in language understanding are making Google Search work much better for you. Made possible through advancements in AI, including a new spelling algorithm, the ability to index specific individual passages from web pages, and new techniques to help people find a wider range of results.

New Lens and AR features in Google Search that help you learn and shop. Lens is making it easier for people to discover (and even style) products as they browse online and with augmented reality. We can now bring the showroom to you if you can’t be there in person.

Finally, Duplex technology is now calling businesses to automatically update handy details like store hours and takeout options on Search and Maps. This year, we’ve used Duplex to make more than 3 million updates to businesses like pharmacies, restaurants and grocery stores that have been seen over 20 billion times in Maps and Search.