Google Now is dead, long live ‘the feed’
Google Now was launched at Google I/O in June, 2012. It was part of a package of updates and UI changes for mobile search, which included a female-voiced mobile assistant to compete with Apple’s Siri.
Google Now was initially a way to get contextually relevant information based on location, time of day and your calendar. It evolved to become much more sophisticated and elaborate, with a wide array of content categories delivered on cards. For a time it was being called “predictive search,” although that term has faded.
Now was billed as a way to get information on your smartphone without actively searching for it. It was heralded by some as the future of mobile search.
The ‘feed experience’ improves
Today Google is officially killing the “Google Now” brand. It’s not getting rid of the functionality however. That will remain and is being upgraded with an improved design and some new features, including reciprocal connections between search and your personalized content feed.
Last December Google introduced a new “feed experience” as part of Google Now, which featured topics in one tab and a second tab for personal information and updates, such as travel plans and meetings. In the rollout today, (Google app for Android and iOS) that two-tab structure is preserved, but the feed is becoming richer and more controllable. The rollout is US only with international markets happening in the coming weeks.
