Google has added AI Overview to its search results for web users in the US, which is hitting the headlines for all the wrong reasons. Rather than users noting it as a useful service that aids the experience, they are reflecting on its potential for inaccuracy, its damning affect on publishers as it pushes their original content further down the search results page, and simply for the fact it cannot be turned off, which does seem to be something of an oversight. Meanwhile, those of us outside the US are wondering what all the fuss is about. Here’s how you can find out, by turning on AI Overview on your Android phone or iPhone outside the US – and then turning it off again if you don’t like it.
Google says its AI Overview is coming to users outside the US later in 2024, but you don’t need to wait until then to try AI Overview in the UK or elsewhere. AI Overview, which Google says “takes the work out of searching by providing an AI-generated snapshot with key information and links to dig deeper”, is being gradually rolled out to users in the US whether they like it or not, but it is also an experimental feature available in Search Labs. This simple hack lets you access it wherever you are – even in the US, if you’re yet to see the new changes in your browser.
Before we start, here are some things you need:
- To be 18 or older
- A Google account
- An Android device or iPhone with the latest version of Google, Chrome, Firefox or Safari
- A trusted VPN
Note that this method of enabling AI Overview also works on a computer with the desktop version of Chrome, but we’re focussing on the mobile experience here. Our screenshots were taken using an Android phone.
If you’ve not used a VPN (virtual private network) before, understand that it re-routes your IP address, allowing you to browse the internet as if you were in another country. For the purposes of this tutorial, it fools your browser into thinking you are in the US. Note that the experimantal AI Overview Search Lab feature is available in some countries and languages other than US and English, but we’ve specifically chosen the US because that’s where Google has now rolled out the feature to all users.
There are many VPN providers out there, but we’d recommend NordVPN due to its wide range of servers and competitive pricing, though a free trial is also available. You can find more options in our list of the best VPNs.
Technically, all you should need to do to see AI Overview is to switch on your VPN and begin searching Google ‘from the US’. In our tests this didn’t produce results, however, and we also needed to turn on the Search Labs feature, as we detail below.
Keep in mind that even with AI Overview switched on, not every search result will be met with an AI Overview response. Google doesn’t specify the requirements but says you’ll see one “when our systems determine that generative AI can be especially helpful – for example, when you want to quickly understand information from a range of sources”. When you first turn on AI Overview it will also some offer some examples of what those searches might look like.
How to get Google AI Overview in search
If you’ve ticked all the boxes mentioned above then it’s not too difficult to get AI Overview answers in your search results.
- Install a VPN on your phone and set the location to USA.
- Open Chrome or another compatible browser and make sure you’re signed in to your Google account.
- Tap the Search Labs icon (it’s a lab flask) – if it doesn’t show up, search Google for ‘Search Labs’ and click on the top result.
- You should be presented with a big ‘Turn on’ button for AI Overview. Tap this and agree/decline the newsletter updates.
- Now go back to Google search and see if you get an AI Overview result. You’ll know as there’s an orange astroid icon with ‘AI Overview’ next to it.
How to switch Google AI Overview answers off
If you don’t like AI Overview then it’s easy to switch off. You could simply switch off your VPN so that you start seeing local results again, or you could disable the AI Overviews feature in Search Labs as detailed below.
- Open your preferred app and make sure you’re signed into your Google account.
- Tap the Search Labs icon and select ‘Manage’.
- Toggle the ‘AI Overviews and more’ option to off.
You might also be interested in the 5 best Samsung Galaxy AI features that will change the way you use your phone.
