Google pivots from infinite scroll as AI ushers in next era of search, with implications for user behavior, monetization strategies, and the battle between tech giants.
The end of infinite scroll and the birth of AI-powered search: Google is phasing out continuous scrolling of search results, introduced in 2021 to mirror social media feeds, in favor of serving results faster and requiring users to explicitly request additional pages:
- Desktop users will be able to directly navigate to specific search result pages or click “Next” to see the next page, while mobile users will soon see a “More results” button at the bottom of a search to load the next page.
- The shift is driven by the advent of generative AI, which is transforming the way users interact with search engines, focusing on consolidated views and highly relevant summaries rather than endless scrolling.
Monetization opportunities and challenges in the AI era: The generative AI era presents new monetization opportunities for search providers and content creators, but also raises questions about data rights and ownership:
- Large language models (LLMs) can abstract content and create monetization opportunities for both search providers and content creators, potentially through licensing deals to improve the quality of search result abstracts.
- However, search providers like Google and Microsoft, which have long relied on pay-per-click behavior and ads in search feeds, will need to carefully monitor user behavior on LLM-driven search results to ensure their revenue models remain effective.
The battle for dominance in AI-powered search: The shift towards AI-powered search is expected to ignite a battle for dominance between major players in the tech industry:
- Google, Microsoft/OpenAI, and new entrants like Anthropic, Cohere, and Perplexity are all vying to capitalize on the generative AI era and the new search paradigm it brings.
- Amazon’s Q chatbot for enterprise use is also poised to leverage AI for shopping-related searches, further intensifying the competition.
Concerns and unknowns in the new search landscape: The move away from infinite scroll has raised concerns about the impact on user behavior, website traffic, and the visibility of smaller websites:
- Some SEO experts argue that results after the first page produce minimal clicks and that infinite scroll helped lower-ranked sites gain visibility, which may now be threatened by pagination.
- There is a risk that the new search approach may favor larger businesses and minimize traffic for less-visible sites, potentially intermediating small businesses.
Analyzing deeper: The shift towards AI-powered search marks a significant inflection point in the evolution of search engines, with far-reaching implications for users, content creators, and tech giants alike. While the promise of highly accurate abstracts and relevant results is compelling, the transition also raises important questions about data rights, monetization strategies, and the potential for further consolidation of power among the industry’s dominant players. As the pace and finality of this pivot remain to be seen, it is clear that the search landscape is undergoing a profound transformation that will shape the way we access and engage with information in the years to come.
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