You may be doing most of your Black Friday and Christmas shopping online, but you’ll likely be visiting many physical retail stores in the coming weeks. You’ll be bombarded with deals on all kinds of products on your Christmas lists, but you won’t know if the price in store is better than the deals you can get online. That’s where Google’s new AI update for Google Lens comes in.
The app will allow you to take a photo of a product and provide more information. It’s a feature already available in Google Lens. However, with this new update, Google Lens will now display product information tailored to the store you are visiting.
Google Lens will show reviews of similar products that may be in stock at that store and let you know if the price is competitive. It all happens with just one photo, and it could beat any in-store shopping experience involving online searches you’ve ever tried.
Google said in a blog post that Google Lens is used nearly 20 billion times per month, with nearly 4 billion shopping-related sessions.
This new feature is possible thanks to Google’s “major advances” in AI image recognition technology. The company said various technologies were involved, including the Shopping Graph’s 45 billion product listings, in-stock inventory data from various listings, and Gemini models.
Google also cites studies showing that Google Lens could be useful to undecided buyers. According to a survey, 72% of Americans use their smartphones to shop in stores. More than 50% of people surveyed left a store empty-handed because they weren’t confident enough to buy.
Google Lens could give you the reassurance you need. You may want to read reviews or look for the best possible deals for Black Friday and Christmas. Google Lens might help, as seen above and below.
While the Google Lens update is definitely great news for buyers, it won’t work with all product types. Initially, beauty products, toys and electronic devices will be covered. Other caveats include stores sharing their inventory with Google. Additionally, you will need to share your location when using Google Lens through the Google app.
The new Google Lens AI feature will work great when paired with the latest Google Maps update. A few days ago, Google revealed that you can search for products in Google Maps and the app will show you nearby stores that have them in stock.
The Google Lens update will roll out to Android and iPhone in the US via the Google app. The Google Maps update will cover household items, electronics, clothing, groceries, and other items. This update will be available in the coming weeks in the United States.
Along with the new Lens AI features, Google also announced updates for Google Pay that you might enjoy during the busy shopping season.
Google is expanding its Buy Now, Pay Later feature by adding Afterpay to Google Pay. The payments app already supports Affirm and Zip, and Klarna is coming soon.
Google is also updating a security feature in Google Pay, virtual cards. The feature allows you to mask physical card numbers from American Express, Capital One, and Citi to reduce the risk of fraud. This month, Google Pay will also support Discover cards in the United States. Virtual Cards will be available on Android and Chrome.
Finally, Google is working on an interesting pilot program that could strengthen the security of in-store card transactions.
Google said it is working on a service to help merchants identify fraudulent transactions. This pilot would prevent thieves from using stolen financial information and unblock legitimate transactions that might be mistakenly flagged as fraudulent. It’s unclear how this feature will work or when it will be available.
