Google's Liz Reid on Who Will Own Search in a World of AI
Alphabet's head of search on adapting to the rise of LLMs.
Listen to Odd Lots on Apple Podcasts
Listen to Odd Lots on Spotify
Watch Odd Lots on YouTube
Subscribe to the newsletter
Not too long ago, search engines were the dominant form of querying the internet. But that's changing since the rise of large language models like ChatGPT, Claude, and Google's Gemini. More and more people are getting their online info through AI, effectively bypassing the search bars of old and creating a tension for large tech companies that offer AI models, but also make money from web traffic and search-related advertising. In this episode, we speak with Elizabeth Reid, VP of search at Google. Liz has been with the company for more than two decades, witnessing multiple tech transformations in that time. So we talk with her about how Google is incorporating Gemini into search via AI overviews, what that means for traffic and ad sales, and the practical experience of search in an age of LLMs and internet slop.