What a Google paywall could mean for you

Search engine giant Google is considering charging for content generated by artificial intelligence in a move that will mark the first time it has asked users to pay for any of its core products, according to reports.

The technology group is investigating ways of making AI-powered search features available on its subscription service which offer access to Gemini, its new AI assistant and Google’s version of the chatbot ChatGPT.

Google’s main search engine would remain free to use under the plan, with additional content available to those who pay a fee, the Financial Times reported. It is estimated that more than a billion people worldwide use the search tool every month.

The premium service is being developed ahead of a decision by Google-owners Alphabet to approve it. Google fears that AI-generated content could threaten its search engine operation which generates revenues of $175bn (£138bn) from advertising which appears alongside its search results.

The profitable search business is among the reasons Google has not had to charge users. AI-generated results are more expensive for the tech group because they require more computing resources.

Experts have warned that more comprehensive AI-generated answers may mean users would no longer need to go through Google search operations, reducing the number of ads they see.

There are also concerns that online publishers, reliant on Google for traffic to their online sites, will see reduced numbers of visitors, if AI services are taking it and presenting it directly to users.

Alphabet’s rival Microsoft, which has a close commercial relationship with OpenAI, developer of ChatGPT, has already incorporated some of the results in its search engine Bing.

“We’re not working on or considering an ad-free search experience. As we’ve done many times before, we’ll continue to build new premium capabilities and services to enhance our subscription offerings across Google,” the company said.

“For years, we’ve been reinventing Search to help people access information in the way that’s most natural to them.

“With our generative AI experiments in Search, we’ve already served billions of queries, and we’re seeing positive Search query growth in all of our major markets. We’re continuing to rapidly improve the product to serve new user needs.”

Gemini’s launch in February proved controversial when users found its image service was generating historically inaccurate images including black vikings, an Asian woman in a German World War II-era military uniform and a female Pope.

Google apologised and “paused” the tool, saying it was “missing the mark”. It has also restricted the types of election-related questions users can ask the chatbox.