Google / Elyse Betters Picaro / ZDNET
Last fall, Google unveiled a new feature for NotebookLM — an option to turn your research into a fake podcast that helps you easily digest information.
Now, your favorite faux podcast hosts are coming to Search.
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When you search for something in Google, you’ll now see an option to make a podcast summarizing the information. It’s for more in-depth queries, not straightforward Google searches. It’s less for “What’s the weather today” and more for “How do noise-canceling headphones work” or “Why is gold so valuable?”
How ‘podcast’ summaries work in Search
When you search with this feature on, you’ll still see the traditional AI overview at the top. A result or two will appear below, then the “People also ask” section. Below that, you’ll see “Generate audio overview.”
When I tested it with Google’s example of “How do noise-canceling headphones work,” it took about 5 seconds to build the audio. When it was done, a small player appeared and I had a four-minute discussion between two hosts explaining exactly how the technology functions. There are buttons to pause, mute, and adjust playback speed.
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A notice said Google took its information from nine different sources and cited each one — useful if you want to dive more into the topic yourself.
Like in Google’s other products, the mock podcast sounded fairly natural. I let my 11-year-old son try it out, and naturally, his first podcast request was asking why a certain bodily function smells bad. When Google generated the podcast, my son thought it was real people speaking.
You can’t interview this podcast yet like you can with NotebookLM’s version, but it’s a fantastic option for getting an overview of a topic you want to know more about.
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Since this is a Google Labs feature for now, you’ll need to opt-in first. You can do that here.
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