Google is expanding its AI Overviews feature, which provides summarized answers to complex questions from the web, to six additional countries. The feature, which was launched in the United States just three months ago, will now be available in India, Japan, Mexico, Indonesia, Brazil, and the United Kingdom. The expansion includes support for local languages in addition to English.

The decision to bring AI Overviews to millions more users raises concerns about potential issues that may arise. In an interview with Engadget, Hema Budaraju, senior director of product management for Search at Google, acknowledged the challenges in maintaining quality across different languages on the vast scale of the web. Budaraju emphasized the importance of utilizing artificial intelligence to better understand languages and prevent any misunderstandings.

To avoid potential controversies similar to the recent "glue pizza" incident in the United States, Google has taken precautions to ensure that AI Overviews meet the standards of local languages, such as Hindi and Japanese. The company has conducted language-specific testing and implemented red-teaming, a technique used to stress-test systems against potential attacks from malicious actors. Budaraju assured that Google is committed to addressing any potential issues promptly and is actively listening to user feedback.

In May, Google made adjustments to AI Overviews following the outlandish responses that garnered attention. These adjustments included limiting the inclusion of satire and humor content and refining the types of queries that trigger the feature. These measures were taken to improve the reliability and accuracy of the answers generated by AI.

In addition to expanding to more countries, Google is introducing important changes to AI Overviews. The feature will now prominently display links to sources on the right-hand side of each AI-generated answer. This enhancement aims to make it easier for users to access the original website where the answer originated. Furthermore, for a small percentage of users, Google will also include links directly within the text of AI Overviews, alleviating concerns from publishers about losing traffic to AI-generated content.

Users who opt-in to Search Labs, Google's platform for testing upcoming features, will have access to additional capabilities. These include the ability to save a specific AI Overview for future reference and the option to simplify the language of an AI-generated answer, a feature that was previously previewed by Google earlier this year.

In summary, Google's expansion of AI Overviews to six new countries demonstrates the company's commitment to providing helpful and accurate information to users worldwide. By implementing stringent language-specific testing, red-teaming, and incorporating user feedback, Google aims to prevent any controversies while maintaining the reliability of AI-generated answers. The introduction of prominent source links and additional features for users further enhances accessibility and user experience.