Here’s why I turned off AI Overviews and why you should consider it too

The new AI overviews aren't my cup of tea, and really I can't say I recommend anyone using them right now.

Here’s why I turned off AI Overviews and why you should consider it too
AI Overviews at Google I/O.
Credit: Google

As a major AI advocate and enthusiast, I was one of the first people to sign up for Google’s Search Generative Experience, also known as Google AI Overviews. Back when I first tried the feature, it was available only to those who signed up for Search Labs, and it was completely optional. Out of curiosity, especially as someone who writes for a living and follows AI developments closely, I decided to explore it to see how it might continue to disrupt my industry.

For the first few weeks, I found myself frequently reviewing the AI results, though I always took an extra step to delve deeper into the actual sources or search results further down the page. That’s how I realized that, like with most things related to AI, the results varied dramatically in terms of accuracy. For basic inquiries like “When did World War II start?” I found it worked pretty well. However, when delving into specific battles or dates, things would quickly unravel.