Google Overhauls Search Platform with AI Agents and New Pricing Tiers
The largest search update in 25 years brings information agents, generative UI, and expanded Personal Intelligence to nearly 200 countries, while Google adjusts its commercial structure to compete with rivals.
Google has announced the most significant overhaul of its search platform in over 25 years at its I/O 2026 conference, introducing a completely reimagined AI-powered search box and integrating its new Gemini 3.5 Flash model as the default for AI Mode globally. The company reported that AI Mode has surpassed one billion monthly users, with queries more than doubling every quarter since its debut. This strategic pivot aims to merge traditional search engine capabilities with advanced artificial intelligence, allowing users to engage with agents simply by asking questions.
The updated search interface is designed to be more intuitive, dynamically expanding to accommodate complex queries and accepting inputs across multiple modalities, including text, images, files, videos, and Chrome tabs. Google stated that the intelligent search box will anticipate user intent and provide AI-powered suggestions beyond standard autocomplete. This new experience is live today across desktop and mobile devices in all countries and languages where AI Mode is available, maintaining the existing range of search results while enhancing the conversational flow.
A key component of the update is the introduction of "information agents," which operate in the background to monitor web data for specific queries and provide synthesized updates. These agents can scan blogs, news sites, social posts, and real-time data on finance, shopping, and sports. For example, users can set parameters for apartment hunting or sneaker releases, and the agent will notify them when relevant listings or drops appear. Information agents will launch first for Google AI Pro and Ultra subscribers this summer, with broader availability to follow.
Google is also expanding agentic booking capabilities to include local experiences and services such as home repair, beauty, and pet care. In select categories, the system can call businesses on behalf of users to complete bookings. These capabilities, along with generative UI tools that create custom dashboards, trackers, and mini-apps using Google Antigravity, will roll out to all users in the U.S. this summer. The generative UI features, which allow for the creation of visual tools and simulations on the fly, will be free of charge for everyone in Search.
In a move to adjust its commercial structure, Google reduced the price of its AI Ultra subscription tier from $250 to $200 per month and introduced a new $100 monthly plan for power users. Concurrently, the company is expanding Personal Intelligence features to nearly 200 countries and 98 languages without requiring a subscription. This allows users to securely connect apps like Gmail and Google Photos, with Google Calendar integration coming soon, ensuring that AI understands user context while maintaining transparency and control.
