What is ‘Magi,’ Google’s upcoming AI-powered search engine that could rival Microsoft’s Bing?

Priya Walia

google search

As the focus shifts toward Artificial Intelligence, the race to develop a superhuman AI is gaining momentum. In this regard, Alphabet Inc has become the topic of discussion this week due to its ambitious AI-driven projects. Although Google’s Bard chatbot and its range of AI products centered on text-to-images and text-to-videos are widely acknowledged, recent developments highlight Google’s efforts to incorporate cutting-edge AI tools into its search engine.

A recent development has emerged wherein Samsung, the South Korean smartphone manufacturer, has decided to replace Google with Microsoft’s Bing as the pre-selected search engine on their line of devices. From the looks of it, the recent change has caused some discontent, given that Bing has been an alternative search engine for a considerable time. According to a report by The New York Times, the latest development has led Alphabet to take urgent action.

Several AI-powered search engines, including Bing, are proving formidable competitors to Google. Nevertheless, recent reports reveal that Google is preparing to develop a new search engine leveraging AI and is currently enhancing its current search engine with an array of AI functionalities. According to internal documents acquired by media outlets, it is evident that these initiatives have been consolidated under the umbrella of a project named Magi.

What is ‘Magi,’ Google’s upcoming AI-powered search engine?

Project Magi by Google is propelling the development of a range of innovative features that are being directed by executives, designers, and engineers. All stakeholders associated with the project are currently working avidly and adopting a sprint mindset. As per reports, the upcoming search engine under the auspices of Project Magi will deliver a significantly more personalized experience to users than the existing version. It has been estimated that almost 160 employees are working diligently on this ambitious undertaking.

It should be highlighted that the proposed plans to redesign the search experience are still in the early stages, and no definitive timeline has been disclosed regarding any prospective announcements. The forthcoming system will employ machine learning to discern user preferences as they engage with it. The reimagined search will present preselected options for shopping, information retrieval, and other insights that the system has inferred. According to reports, the enhanced search experience will offer a more interactive and engaging encounter, akin to that of interacting with a knowledgeable human expert. In essence, Google’s advanced AI search will feature a user interface reminiscent of ChatGPT.

Via The New York Times