Google is enhancing the user experience of its AI Overviews in Search with a new loading animation that’s both more dynamic and visually tied to its Gemini AI brand. Previously, when AI Overviews were loading, users would see “Searching…” followed by “Generating…” with simple blue text indicators. Now, for those in the Search Labs beta program, Google is experimenting with a sequence that starts with “Generating…” in the top-left corner, progresses to “Looking this up” and then “Putting it all together” in a more engaging manner.
This new animation comes with a pulsating blue and purple spotlight within a rectangular container, directly linking the AI Overviews to the Gemini AI through design elements like the “Gemini sparkle” or the beaker icon seen in Search Labs. This aesthetic choice not only makes the loading process more interesting but also strengthens the visual identity of Gemini across Google’s products, including its overlay on Android devices and in Gemini Live.
The top of the overview now also carries a label stating, “Generative AI is experimental,” a nod to the ongoing development and refinement of these AI features, reminiscent of the initial experimental phase of AI Overviews.
This animation might be more than just a visual upgrade; it could signal the integration of Gemini 2.0 into Search’s AI Overviews. Earlier this month, Google began testing Gemini 2.0 for these overviews, promising enhanced capabilities to handle complex queries, from math problems to coding and multimodal interactions. The new animation’s slower pace might reflect this increased computational demand, giving users a sense of the AI working through more intricate processes behind the scenes.
While this new animation has only been reported by a few users, suggesting it’s still in a testing phase within Search Labs, its broader rollout could be on the horizon, especially if it’s tied to the Gemini 2.0 update slated for early next year. This update aims to make AI Overviews not just an answer box but a more sophisticated tool for understanding and interaction with search queries.
As Google continues to push the boundaries of what AI can do in search, these visual and functional enhancements are part of a broader strategy to make AI interactions more intuitive, transparent, and aligned with user expectations. The community’s feedback on these changes will be crucial as Google looks to refine and possibly expand this feature set.
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