I'm Talking Back to Google's New Search Live Mode for AI Convos About Big Events

Google's latest AI addition makes Google searches conversational on your phone with Search Live -- and I love being able to interrupt it.

While Google's AI Mode search has been available to a broad number of users in recent days, the company rolled out the Search Live function on June 18 for iOS and Android users. You can access it through a new "Live" icon in AI Mode -- a star above three audio lines. This creates an ongoing conversation with Google's search engine that's significantly different than what you could do before.

Before, I could use Google's AI mode and the microphone function to ask any question, like "How can I protect my home from the summer heat?" and get a customized summary of what Gemini thinks is good advice. But it was a one-way street -- I couldn't ask follow-up questions or for more details. Search Live changes that.

Search Live puts you in a constant conversation mode with a customized version of Gemini that's made to chat. Ask something, and it will reply with an audio description while showing sites on the screen that it's pulling info from, so you can tap them to get all the details. My favorite part is that you can interrupt the audio report at any time for clarification or a different take. Search Live takes a couple of seconds to respond -- once it has, it will go on mute if you don't speak again when it's finished.

In my experiments, I pushed Search Live hard by asking for the latest details of the Israel-Iran conflict. I was quickly presented with an enormous amount of spoken info about the latest missile strikes. I found that overwhelming, and quickly asked for the latest response from Israel, which yielded a more concise summary of quotes and actions.

Then I asked what the take of one specific politician was, and Search Live responded not only with a summary of their general stance but also with recent bipartisan legislation they had launched and a quote about the conflict from one of their recent tweets.

Finally, I asked how the Israel-Iran conflict could affect mortgage rates. Gemini was pretty vague on that part, saying the issues were complex. CNET's expert finance coverage on this front goes into much more detail.

Liza Ma, Google's director of product management for search, told me she uses the feature to inquire about outdoor activities.

"I'm a big fan of hiking, and Search Live is perfect for getting quick tips when I'm about to hit the trail," Ma said, "I can find out what to expect when it comes to plants and wildlife, or the best places to stop and enjoy the view."

As with the other features in Google's experimental AI Mode, CNET will be testing out Search Live more in the coming days to see how well it works and how it integrates with other Gemini-related search capabilities, like letting you digitally try on clothes with a voice command.