Google’s AI Mode just took its latest steps forward. And these steps involve both global and local expansion. For the former, it’s available in more countries. And for the latter, its agentic functions are now more capable for typical local search needs, starting with finding and booking reservations at restaurants.
Before going deeper into each of these developments, what is AI Mode? This is Google’s AI function that lets users ask multi-part and successive questions about a given topic as they zero in on answers. This is meant to resemble more of a human conversation than traditional self-contained search queries.
Back to the latest updates, Google’s global expansion involves availability in 180 new countries. This batch includes English-speaking countries only – expanding from AI-Mode’s previous availability in the U.S., U.K., and India. Google was also clear that this is just the latest wave, and that more countries will follow.
As for the “local” updates, AI mode’s agentic functionality is now expressly built for the purposes of restaurant reservations. Specifically, users can request dinner reservations and specify multiple preferences. For example, they can enter parameters such as dietary restrictions, date, and party size.
AI Mode will then process inputs and do its thing. That includes autonomously searching across websites, local content aggregators, review sites, and reservations platforms. It will then come back with a curated list of options for the user to choose from. They can choose the best one or ask AI mode to refine further.
Platinum Package
There are a few aspects of this autonomous workflow that designate it as ‘agentic.’ Though that term is thrown around by companies looking to link themselves to AI buzz, it’s not always the case. With AI Mode, there are multiple tasks done by the AI agent, which are then synthesized and presented to the user.
And true to AI Mode’s DNA, users can ask follow-up questions or add parameters and request that the workflow be completed again. For example, a user may remember after getting the initial batch of agentic results that a member of their party is vegan or gluten intolerant; or that they need to move the date.
Also true to AI-Mode, it will have a memory in terms of users’ past preferences. That means that it can get smarter and more customized per-user over time. And the more it learns about a signed-in Google user, the better it will be at proactively finding the right choices – whether it be restaurants, fashion, or dentists.
Speaking of which, Google teased more local-search-like functionality in AI mode for use cases such a local service appointments and event tickets. Those will likely be designed using whatever Google learns from the initial restaurant use case. And many more local verticals and use cases will likely flow from there.
As for availability, the restaurant-specific functionality will roll out first for Google AI Ultra subscribers in the U.S.. That’s Google’s platinum package for AI at $249 per month. But users can sidestep that price tag by accessing all the above through the “Agentic capabilities in AI Mode” experiment in Google Labs.
