Google’s AI Mode search can now answer questions about images

Google started cramming AI features into search in 2024, but last month marked an escalation. With the release of AI Mode, Google previewed a future in which searching the web does not return a list of 10 blue links. Google says it’s getting positive feedback on AI Mode from users, so it’s forging ahead by adding multimodal functionality to its robotic results.

AI Mode relies on a custom version of the Gemini large language model (LLM) to produce results. Google confirms that this model now supports multimodal input, which means you can now show images to AI Mode when conducting a search.

As this change rolls out, the search bar in AI Mode will gain a new button that lets you snap a photo or upload an image. The updated Gemini model can interpret the content of images, but it gets a little help from Google Lens. Google notes that Lens can identify specific objects in the images you upload, passing that context along so AI Mode can make multiple sub-queries, known as a “fan-out technique.”

Google illustrates how this could work in the example below. The user shows AI Mode a few books, asking questions about similar titles. Lens identifies each individual title, allowing AI Mode to incorporate the specifics of the books into its response. This is key to the model’s ability to suggest similar books and make suggestions based on the user’s follow-up question.