Google Discover adds AI chatbot-personalized feed
▼ Summary
– Google is rolling out an AI-powered feature to the Google app that lets users customize their Discover feed by describing preferences through a chatbot-style interface.
– The feature, accessed via the three-dot menu, confirms user choices, allows corrections, and applies changes with a “Refresh your feed” button.
– Google Discover currently recommends articles based on user activity across Google’s search engine and apps, and similar AI feed customization exists on YouTube, Instagram, Bluesky, and X.
– Google also added a feature to personalize daily audio briefings in the Google News app on Android by selecting preferred topics.
– An update to Preferred Sources lets publishers add an interactive button on their sites, enabling readers to add the outlet to their preferred list without leaving the webpage.
Google is rolling out a fresh way to shape your Discover feed: instead of relying on the algorithm’s guesses, you can now tell it exactly what you want. The company says the update, which will land in the Google app over the next few days, uses AI to adjust your feed on the fly and retain those preferences for future sessions.
The new tool lives inside the three-dot menu on your Discover feed. According to a video Google shared, tapping it opens a chatbot-style prompt where you can type out your content preferences. The bot will summarize what it understood and highlight the kinds of stories it plans to prioritize. If it misses the mark, you can add more detail before hitting “Refresh your feed” to apply the changes.
This gives you a more direct hand in curating Discover, which typically surfaces articles based on your activity across Google Search and its suite of apps. The move follows a broader trend among platforms adding AI-driven feed customization, with YouTube, Instagram, Bluesky, and X each introducing similar controls.
Google also unveiled a few other tweaks alongside this one. The Google News app on Android now lets you tailor daily audio briefings, choosing which topics you want included in your morning rundown.
Additionally, the Preferred Sources feature is getting an upgrade. This tool already boosts visibility for outlets you favor in Search’s “top stories” section, AI Overviews, and AI Mode. Now, publishers can embed an interactive “Preferred Sources” button directly on their websites. Clicking it adds the outlet to your list instantly, no need to leave the page or dig through settings.
(Source: The Verge)
