Edgar Cervantes/Android Authority
TL;DR
- Google is testing a feature that allows users to upload files and ask questions about the content through the search bar.
- A paperclip icon in the search bar enables users to attach locally stored files, turning Google Search into a document analysis tool.
- It’s unclear whether this feature is just something Google is testing or if it’s a serious candidate for a wider rollout.
It appears that Google is testing a way to scrape documents directly from the search bar. The new feature will allow users to attach a file through the search bar and ask Google anything about it, just like a web search.
A clip of how this feature will work was shared by Khushal Bherwani on X (formerly Twitter) SEroundtable, A paper clip icon will appear next to the voice search and lens icons in the Google search bar. Tapping this will allow users to attach a locally stored file. Once the file is uploaded to Google, users will be able to “Ask anything about the file” by typing their query in the search bar.
The feature appears to be similar to ChatGPT’s document search capabilities, allowing users to attach different types of files and ask questions about them. A similar feature is also available through Google Gemini, but you will need to subscribe to Gemini Advanced to upload and analyze files.
Adding a free document search feature to the Google search bar can definitely win the company some extra brownie points from users. However, this raises some concerns about data privacy. Uploading personal documents to Google can potentially expose sensitive information, so users will need to be extra cautious about the files they share when the feature is available.
At this point, it’s unclear whether Google is just experimenting with document search in Google Search or whether it’s a serious candidate for a broader rollout. We also don’t know whether this feature will be limited to the web interface for Google Search or whether it is something that Google will implement on its mobile apps as well.
