Google is rolling out version 2.0 of its Gemini AI model today for the web. But the real news is what Google calls “Deep Research,” which attempts to mimic how actual humans research a subject and develop a report on it.
It’s yet another tool that students have available to them, and one that probably will scare teachers who worry about AI being used for cheating even more.
Google AI-powered search worried content creators because it slurped up content that others had created and passed it off as its own work, with some minimal footnotes to point back at the original authors. Deep Research takes this to another level.
Deep Research takes a prompt and first crafts a research plan, according to Google. Instead of immediately setting out to craft a report, it will first ask you to approve the general outline of the plan. Only then will it set out to actually craft the report, properly footnoted. An example graphic showed Deep Research basically taking the results from over 48 websites and collating them into a finished report.
What’s interesting is that Google apparently revamps its report on the fly, crafting updated drafts as it uncovers new information — like a human might. Google’s example says that the report takes a “few minutes” to finish up.
“Over the course of a few minutes, Gemini continuously refines its analysis, browsing the web the way you do: searching, finding interesting pieces of information, and then starting a new search based on what it’s learned,” Google said. “It repeats this process multiple times and, once complete, generates a comprehensive report of the key findings, which you can export into a Google Doc. It’s neatly organized with links to the original sources, connecting you to relevant websites and businesses or organizations you might not have found otherwise so you can easily dive deeper to learn more.”
What’s interesting is that Google’s blog post actually pitches this as a tool for, say, a grad student to “get smart” about the technology, without referencing the possibility that the student could just use Deep Research to write their paper.
Although we haven’t seen the results first-hand, it sounds like Google at least can mimic the way in which students can research and report on a topic. You’ll just have to pay for it: Deep Research will be part of Gemini Advanced, Google’s $19.99/mo service that includes a Google One membership as well as access to Google’s next-generation AI models.
Author: Mark Hachman, Senior Editor, PCWorld
Mark has written for PCWorld for the last decade, with 30 years of experience covering technology. He has authored over 3,500 articles for PCWorld alone, covering PC microprocessors, peripherals, and Microsoft Windows, among other topics. Mark has written for publications including PC Magazine, Byte, eWEEK, Popular Science and Electronic Buyers' News, where he shared a Jesse H. Neal Award for breaking news. He recently handed over a collection of several dozen Thunderbolt docks and USB-C hubs because his office simply has no more room.