As it turns out, TikTok threatens Google’s business not only in terms of YouTube – web search and maps are also starting to lose users. One of the top managers of Google, during a speech at an industry event, said that the younger generation is increasingly starting to search for information on social networks.
Discussing the evolution of search at the Fortune Brainstorm Tech conference, Prabhakar Raghavan, Senior Vice President and Head of Knowledge and Information Organization at Google, noted that young users are increasingly looking for information not in web search or Google maps, but through apps like Instagram and TikTok.
Young users are abandoning Google search and maps in favor of Instagram and TikTok
“We are learning time and time again that new Internet users lack the expectations and mindsets we are accustomed to. The questions they ask are categorically different. According to our research; almost 40% of young people do not use maps or Google searches; when they are looking for a place to dine. They go to TikTok or Instagram,” said Mr. Raghavan. Google confirmed this figure to TechCrunch reporters: the result was obtained from an internal study, the respondents were users from the United States aged 18 to 24 years. The data will be available later, as well as other statistics; for example, 55% of product searches begin with the word “Amazon”.
Gizchina News of the week
A top Google executive noted that young people prefer “visually rich forms” when searching; and this applies not only to places to eat. Representatives of the younger generation going online today have never seen paper maps that modern mapping services imit; they do not meet the expectations of young people. Google is trying to keep up with the times by adding augmented reality features, 3D modes or “immersive” elements to its maps; making them look less like paper prototypes.
The company is now trying to negotiate with the owners of social networks so that the search engine can index videos from Instagram and TikTok. Google also uses artificial intelligence technologies to analyze videos. For example, when searching for instructions on how to change a wheel; you can immediately rewind the video to the point where they show how to remove nuts. Although such a deep level of understanding is now only in testing by engineers.
