When did Google get so weird?(sancho.bearblog.dev)
2002 points by sancho-panza 16 days ago | 1110 comments
tl;dr: The author searched Google for an old basketball meme phrase ("hes never coming over dario") and received an AI Overview that misinterpreted the query as emotional distress over a romantic rejection, offering empathetic consolation instead of links. The actual relevant results were buried hundreds of pixels below the AI response. The author argues this illustrates how Google has drifted from its mission of organizing information into forcing parasocial chatbot interactions where they aren't wanted.
HN Discussion:
  • ↑AI Overviews produce misleading or fabricated information, confirming Google search quality has degraded
  • ↑The tech industry is deliberately manipulating users with hyped-up LLMs disguised as AI
  • ↑Users should stop using Google since it has abandoned its search mission
  • ↑Google exploits loneliness by pushing parasocial AI interactions instead of real human connection
  • ↓This chatbot-style search is actually what average users have always wanted and is a product win