Why Google is Integrating Lens with Mobile Image Search

Last month, Google announced enhancements coming to Google Images on the company’s 20th anniversary and are now rolling out one of their most exciting new features.

Cathy Edwards, Director of Engineering for Google Images, announced that Google wants to provide a more immersive visual content experience for users. This is evidenced by the launch of the AMP project (and AMP stories) and visual previews on featured videos in Search, alongside the integration of AI with Lens in Google Images, which will only be available on mobile.

Over the last year, Google has shaken up image search in the algorithm in their pursuit to “rank results that have both great images and great content” and the page authority of the web page an even more important signal in image ranking.

Google Lens is already a feature in Google Assistant which allows you to explore and learn about the world around you by pointing your Android phone at almost anything like a building, an animal, or a plant and instantly receive more information using the feature’s ID skills.

Google Lens in Mobile Image Search: How it Works

In a Google blog post, Assaf Broitman, the Product Manager for Google Images, said “We launched Lens to help you do more with what you see. People already love using it in their camera and on their photos–to find items in an outfit they like, learn more about landmarks, and identify that cute dog in the park. Lens is a natural fit for Google Images.”

Essentially, Google Lens in mobile image search allows users to instantly read more information like product details and where to buy an item in the image. For example, you would search for “modern living room furniture” on Google Images and the top results returned for your query will have dots on the image. You can also draw a circle around an image for more information.

Google says that Lens integrated with Google Images will work on the same objects as it already does in the feature through Google Assistant, but the only significant change is that you can now buy by clicking through on the image.

Google Lens in image search is currently only available in the US for mobile image searches in English. The feature will soon be rolled out in other countries and languages.

Why Google Lens is Integrating into Image Search

Image search first became a necessary next step for Google on February 24th, 2000. It was the day after the Grammy Awards and Jennifer Lopez wore a dazzling green dress that users were frantically searching for to have another look. However, the majority of users were looking for images of the dress, not a post of some industry insider's opinion.

Mobile has since become integral to Google’s approach to search engine optimization by prioritizing convenient, appealing, and informational content that is easily accessible on mobile devices. That’s why Google is integrating Lens into image search in order to deliver a seamless buying experience – from discovery to checkout in seconds – not minutes.

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