According to a Thursday blog post, Google is beginning to roll out agentic capabilities to its AI Mode. For now, the only agentic capability available is restaurant reservations. Users will be able to ask AI mode to find them a reservation that matches their specific needs, including party size, date, time, location, and preferred food type.

Finally, we’re seeing a new look for the app’s search interface. So far, Maps gets you started with a search by pulling up all your recent activity, in case you wanted to repeat a recent destination. Instead of that, developers are also considering an alternate layout that would add an Explore option to check out place categories:

Could this be the Apple Watch killer? Save up to $200 with a trade-in at Best Buy and be among the very first to find out.

Earlier this year, MIT Technology Review published a comprehensive series on AI and energy, at which time none of the major AI companies would reveal their per-prompt energy usage. Google’s new publication, at last, allows for a peek behind the curtain that researchers and analysts have long hoped for. Read the full story.

Android's big Material 3 Expressive redesign brings a ton of background blur through the UI, but Google is adding an option to disable it.

For the climate concerned, the rise of the AI-reliant internet query is a cause for alarm. Many people have turned to ChatGPT and other services for simple questions. And even basic Google searches include an AI-derived result.

Google is making it easier to see more from the sites you love. Here's what to know, including how to add NJHerald.com to your preferred sources.

It’s the most transparent estimate yet from one of the big AI companies, and a long-awaited peek behind the curtain for researchers.