On May 21, 2025, at its annual I/O conference, Google presented a series of new features designed to reposition its search engine in the age of LLM.
Top of the bill: the massive integration of Gemini and the widespread use of "AI Overviews", the automatic summaries generated by AI at the top of the results.
Behind these announcements lies a more brutal reality:
The arrival of ChatGPT, Perplexity and recently GPT Search has profoundly changed the way we use the web.
Google is trying to catch up in a race where it was supposed to be on conquered ground in the face of the new conversational uses that have emerged with the rise of LLMs.
Simply put: Google is playing big. Very big. What's at stake is not just the relevance of its results, but its very place in the future of a conversational and synthetic web, while raising new questions about environmental impact, the sustainability of the media and the future of the entire online search business model.
The end of classic research?
Generative AI is redefining online information retrieval. Just eighteen months ago, the norm was based on keywords, blue links, clicks and manual verification of sources. Since then, ChatGPT, Perplexity and Copilot have imposed a new paradigm: that of a conversational, direct and often sourced search, capable of summarizing, synthesizing and formulating complete answers without leaving the interface.
Google, long the undisputed leader, has seen this upheaval emerge. Too slowly. Bard failed to convince. Gemini is trying to make up for lost time. In the meantime, other players have established themselves as reflexes. The result: Google remains dominant in terms of traffic volume, but its share of "informational" queries - the heart of its advertising model - is shrinking.
The Google I/O 2025 conference marks a turning point. Gemini is now integrated into the entire Google ecosystem: Gmail, Chrome, Docs, Meet. A more proactive "Agent Mode" (project Mariner) arrives on mobile. And above all, AI Overviews - summarized answers generated by AI - will now be generalized in the engine's results. The Google experience is becoming conversational, in line with new uses.
An AI race that's reshaping the web economy
But this evolution is accompanied by unprecedented tensions.
Firstly, in terms of energy. Generating a response via a language model consumes much more than a simple classic search. With AI embedded everywhere - browsers, operating systems, platforms - each interaction weighs more heavily on the environment. A major paradox for technology giants who promise carbon-neutral data centers by 2030.
Secondly, in economic terms. Many media, sites and content creators still depend on search engine traffic for their livelihood. But if users no longer need to click, audiences erode, and revenues plummet. While some major groups have anticipated the change by contracting with AI providers, the majority of independent publishers risk a loss of visibility and, ultimately, viability.
The question becomes: what value can we offer when faced with an AI capable of synthesizing everything? What content is still worth a click, a read, a human interaction?
Because LLMs impose a complete redefinition of access to information. Where Google offered links, these tools offer answers. With the deployment of AI Overviews, this model is becoming the norm - even within Google itself. The risks are real: reliability of content, traceability of sources, dilution of editorial diversity. In the short term, a hybrid model seems to be the way forward: generative AI for synthesis, traditional indexes for verification and monetization.
In the long term, the digital ecosystem will have to reconcile three imperatives: relevance of information, energy sobriety, and responsible data governance.
Google is still ahead, but no longer has a monopoly on innovation. The I/O 2025 conference marks an attempt at reconquest, but also reveals a definite lag. The massive integration of Gemini looks more like a catch-up than a revolution. 2 announcements stood out: Veo 3, an enriched video-generation tool (with integrated and synchronized sound, music, sound effects and dialog), which takes technology to a new level. And "Gemini Agent Mode", which will be able to act in Google applications to perform tasks autonomously (e.g., send an e-mail via Gmail, launch an itinerary in Maps, etc.). For the rest, Google's dominance is now being challenged on its own turf.
Search has changed. So has the interface. The web will never be the same.
Jérôme Malzac
Innovation Director
Micropole, a Talan company
