Google has announced new AI features across Search, shopping, payments, and content verification, covering consumer products and Google Cloud.

The updates, announced at Google I/O 2026, cover Search, Gemini, YouTube, Gmail, Chrome, Pixel, Google Wallet, and Google Cloud. They include changes to product discovery, checkout, task management, and media verification.

Google updates AI Mode in Search

Google is updating AI Mode in Search with Gemini 3.5 Flash as the default model globally. The company said AI Mode has passed one billion monthly users one year after launch. Google also said AI Mode queries have more than doubled every quarter since launch.

Search is also getting a redesigned search box that expands as users enter more detailed questions. It will support text, images, files, videos, and Chrome tabs as inputs.

Google said the search box will offer AI-powered suggestions beyond autocomplete. The feature is rolling out in countries and languages where AI Mode is available.

Users will also be able to ask follow-up questions from AI Overviews and move into AI Mode. Google said context will carry into the conversation, while links and supporting articles remain part of the Search experience.

Google adds Search agents and booking features

Google is adding information agents to Search for users who want to monitor specific topics or requirements. The agents can scan web sources and Google’s real-time data. Those data sources include finance, shopping, and sports information.

The company said users can set requirements for an agent to track, such as listings or product updates. Information agents will launch first for Google AI Pro and Ultra subscribers this summer.

Google is also expanding agentic booking in Search to local experiences and services. Users will be able to enter specific requirements, and Search will return pricing and availability. The results will include links to complete bookings through providers.

In selected categories, users will be able to ask Google to call businesses on their behalf. These categories include home repair, beauty, and pet care. These capabilities will roll out in the US this summer.

Search will also support generative user interfaces. Google said Search will be able to create custom layouts with elements such as visuals, tables, graphs, and simulations. The feature will also support dashboards and trackers. The broader generative UI tools will be available to all Search users this summer.

Custom mini apps built with Antigravity will arrive first for Google AI Pro and Ultra subscribers in the US.

Google is also expanding Personal Intelligence in AI Mode to users in nearly 200 countries and territories across 98 languages. The feature allows users to connect Gmail and Google Photos. Google Calendar support is also planned.

Universal Cart links shopping across Google services

Google also introduced Universal Cart, a shopping feature that works across Google services. Users will be able to add products to the cart while using Search, Gemini, YouTube, or Gmail.

The cart uses Gemini models to monitor products after they are added. It can show price drops, price history, and stock alerts. It can also identify deals across merchants.

Universal Cart is built on Google Wallet and can account for payment method benefits, loyalty information, and merchant offers during checkout. Google said the cart can also flag product compatibility issues, such as incompatible PC components from different retailers.

Checkout will be supported through the Universal Commerce Protocol, or UCP, which Google described as a common language for agent-based commerce. Shoppers will be able to check out with Google Pay across participating brands or move items to a merchant’s website to complete the purchase.

Google said brands will remain the merchant of record. Universal Cart will roll out across Search and the Gemini app in the US this summer, with YouTube and Gmail support to follow.

The company is also expanding UCP-powered checkout to Canada and Australia in the coming months. The UK will follow later.

UCP will also come to YouTube in the US. Google said it will later extend to categories such as hotel booking and local food delivery.

Google details Agent Payments Protocol

Google also announced plans to bring its Agent Payments Protocol, or AP2, into its products. AP2 is designed to support payments made by AI agents under user-defined limits.

Users can set criteria such as the brand, product, and spending limit before an agent completes a purchase. Google said AP2 creates a verifiable link between the user, merchant, and payment processor.

The protocol also creates digital mandates that record the user’s instructions to the agent. Google said this provides a shared record for purchases and returns.

AP2 will start appearing in Google products in the coming months, beginning with Gemini Spark.

Content verification expands across Google products

Google is also expanding content transparency tools across Search, Gemini, Chrome, and Pixel, while adding an AI content detection API on Google Cloud. The tools identify whether content was created or edited using AI.

The company said its SynthID watermarking technology has been used to watermark more than 100 billion images and videos, as well as 60,000 years of audio. SynthID embeds signals into AI-generated content that can later be checked by supported tools.

Google is also using C2PA Content Credentials across several generative media tools. Content Credentials provide information about how media was created or modified, including whether AI tools were involved.

Pixel 10 was the first smartphone to provide Content Credentials for images in its native camera app, according to Google. The company said it will expand the feature to video on Pixel 8, Pixel 9, and Pixel 10 phones in the coming weeks.

Google recently added SynthID verification for images, video, and audio in the Gemini app. The company said the feature has been used 50 million times globally.

SynthID verification is now being added to Search. It will come to Chrome in the coming weeks. Users will be able to check images for SynthID markers through Lens, AI Mode, and Circle to Search. The same function will also be available through Gemini in Chrome.

Google is also adding verification for C2PA Content Credentials in the Gemini app, with Search and Chrome to follow in the coming months. The feature will show whether content is an unaltered original from a camera or whether it has been modified.

Google Cloud adds AI content detection tools

Google is launching an AI Content Detection API on Google Cloud’s Gemini Enterprise Agent Platform. The API is designed to help businesses identify AI-generated media made by Google models and other popular models.

Google said the tool can support backend operations such as feed sorting and insurance fraud checks. It can also support user-facing uses such as fact-checking and synthetic media labelling. It is launching first with trusted partners.

Google said OpenAI, Kakao, and ElevenLabs are bringing SynthID technology to more AI-generated content. The company has also open-sourced its SynthID text watermarking technology. It has separately partnered with NVIDIA to watermark AI-generated video from NVIDIA’s Cosmos world foundation models.

Meta will also start labelling camera-captured media with Content Credentials on Instagram, according to Google. Photos and videos taken natively on Pixel phones will be recognised and labelled when shared on Instagram.

(Photo by Shutter Speed)

See also: OpenAI makes ChatGPT ads easier for ecommerce brands

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