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Google can’t compete with Microsoft without having a huge revenue hit. The large majority of Google’s revenue comes from search ads. Chat gpt doesn’t have searc

Google can’t compete with Microsoft without having a huge revenue hit. The large majority of Google’s revenue comes from search ads. Chat gpt doesn’t have search results, per se. So how do you keep the high ad revenue linking to other sites? I’m not sure they can compete within their existing brand/company structure.

cma 4y ago
You ask it a fashion question, "what goes with this?" and it responds with the answer and mentions a company where you can order something like it (sponsored).
vultour 4y ago
They could add a little box on the right side of the search results with a Chat-GPT generated answer, they already do this to show the "knowledge panel" or whatever the official name is.
ramraj07 4y ago
If you search for a personal injury lawyer (which IIRC a single click on an ad would fetch google a thousand bucks), a chatGPTesque answer could be more convincing in leading you to a paid resource than a list of options with an ad. Imagine an AI half as smart as chatGPT who’s primary goal is to not just give you the answer but also convince you in a legally acceptable way to click a sponsored result.
- brookst 4y ago
  But that blurs editorial and advertising even worse than Google does now. It would make them a laughingstock, and the reputational damage plus competition from companies who have different revenue models would cause loss of market share anyway. If Google is going to survive this, they need to find a way to get back to prioritizing user value while also making money.
candiodari 4y ago
You know, I think the contrary is true. Google works well because of the "search signal", how accurately Google knows what you're wanting to buy, essentially. ChatGPT style conversations would give Google a much better idea of exactly what you want to buy. It must be possible to use this signal to sell more ads, not just match what they currently have. Essentially, make sure ChatGPT gets asked the same question Google currently answers: "how do I get the person searching to buy something from this (loooong) list of ads?". Having people help Google (not just in one search, but a potentially long list of refinements) to find exactly what they would buy should make Google ads perform much better yet again.
- zone411 4y ago
  Exactly, I made the same point before. Google's ads will become more effective AND people will spend more time on Google's properties. This narrative that Google will lose out because people won't view ads never made any sense and it's been repeated like a gospel. Of course Google still dropped the ball by taking way too much time to put their LLMs into use.
  - lastLinkedList 4y ago
    [dead]
yamtaddle 4y ago
I don't think Google can credibly put out an assistant like this, without harming revenue. If they make it promote stuff for pay, it's worthless—you already have to second-guess whether it's right because it might accidentally be wrong, if it might also just be acting as a paid promoter, that puts it firmly in "easier to just not use it" territory. If they put one out but don't make it into an AI infomercial, then it eats ad revenue and investors get pissed off. But if they do nothing they're clearly headed for trouble, too. They're in a tough spot. My guess is they're release something, but keep it strictly separate from search in hopes that it won't replace search traffic. I doubt that'll be enough long-term but it might quiet fears for a while.
- pixl97 4y ago
  If you're a Google investor it might be time to realize that you're going to be taking a hit one way or another.

cma 4y ago

You ask it a fashion question, "what goes with this?" and it responds with the answer and mentions a company where you can order something like it (sponsored).

vultour 4y ago

They could add a little box on the right side of the search results with a Chat-GPT generated answer, they already do this to show the "knowledge panel" or whatever the official name is.

ramraj07 4y ago

If you search for a personal injury lawyer (which IIRC a single click on an ad would fetch google a thousand bucks), a chatGPTesque answer could be more convincing in leading you to a paid resource than a list of options with an ad. Imagine an AI half as smart as chatGPT who’s primary goal is to not just give you the answer but also convince you in a legally acceptable way to click a sponsored result.

brookst 4y ago
But that blurs editorial and advertising even worse than Google does now. It would make them a laughingstock, and the reputational damage plus competition from companies who have different revenue models would cause loss of market share anyway. If Google is going to survive this, they need to find a way to get back to prioritizing user value while also making money.

candiodari 4y ago

You know, I think the contrary is true. Google works well because of the "search signal", how accurately Google knows what you're wanting to buy, essentially. ChatGPT style conversations would give Google a much better idea of exactly what you want to buy. It must be possible to use this signal to sell more ads, not just match what they currently have. Essentially, make sure ChatGPT gets asked the same question Google currently answers: "how do I get the person searching to buy something from this (loooong) list of ads?". Having people help Google (not just in one search, but a potentially long list of refinements) to find exactly what they would buy should make Google ads perform much better yet again.

zone411 4y ago
Exactly, I made the same point before. Google's ads will become more effective AND people will spend more time on Google's properties. This narrative that Google will lose out because people won't view ads never made any sense and it's been repeated like a gospel. Of course Google still dropped the ball by taking way too much time to put their LLMs into use.
- lastLinkedList 4y ago
  [dead]

yamtaddle 4y ago

I don't think Google can credibly put out an assistant like this, without harming revenue. If they make it promote stuff for pay, it's worthless—you already have to second-guess whether it's right because it might accidentally be wrong, if it might also just be acting as a paid promoter, that puts it firmly in "easier to just not use it" territory. If they put one out but don't make it into an AI infomercial, then it eats ad revenue and investors get pissed off. But if they do nothing they're clearly headed for trouble, too. They're in a tough spot. My guess is they're release something, but keep it strictly separate from search in hopes that it won't replace search traffic. I doubt that'll be enough long-term but it might quiet fears for a while.

pixl97 4y ago
If you're a Google investor it might be time to realize that you're going to be taking a hit one way or another.