According to Digital Trends, Google’s AI Mode is getting agentic capabilities that let it perform real-world tasks like booking tickets, scheduling beauty and wellness appointments, and making restaurant reservations. These features are powered by Project Mariner, Google’s experimental AI agent built on the Gemini 2.0 model. The update is currently available to AI Mode users in the United States who have opted into Search Labs, with higher usage limits for paid subscribers. You can also now talk to Search using your microphone or search by picture with Search Live integration in AI Mode. This marks a major shift from simply answering questions to helping users complete multi-step tasks that require reasoning.
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The business shift is huge
Here’s the thing – this isn’t just another search upgrade. Google‘s basically turning its AI into your personal assistant that can actually do stuff for you. Instead of just showing you movie times, it can now book the tickets. Instead of listing restaurants, it can make the reservation. That’s a fundamental change in what we expect from search engines.
And the timing? It’s perfect. Everyone’s talking about AI agents, but Google’s actually shipping one that works. They’re using their massive advantage – being the default search engine for billions – to leapfrog the competition. Think about it: how many people are going to bother with separate AI booking apps when Google can do it right from search?
What this means for you
Basically, your Saturday night planning just got way easier. Instead of bouncing between Fandango, OpenTable, and your calendar app, you can just tell Google’s AI what you want. “Find movie tickets for Dune 2 tonight near me and book a table for two at an Italian restaurant afterward.” The AI handles the research across multiple platforms and gives you curated results with direct booking links.
But there’s a catch – businesses need to pay attention. If you’re a restaurant owner or movie theater, you better make sure your services are properly represented on the platforms that AI Mode consults. Because if the AI can’t find you easily, you’re basically invisible to this new way of searching.
The bigger picture
So where does this leave us? Google’s clearly betting that the future of search isn’t just about finding information – it’s about getting things done. They’re moving up the value chain from answering questions to completing tasks. And they’re doing it through Search Labs experiments first, which is smart – test with early adopters before rolling out to everyone.
Now, the obvious question: is this the beginning of the end for manual web browsing? Probably not entirely, but it does change the game. When AI can handle the tedious comparison shopping across multiple sites, why would most people bother doing it themselves? This feels like one of those moments where we look back and say “remember when we had to book our own movie tickets?”
