Google’s recent pivot towards AI-generated content on its search engine has been met with criticism due to the perceived degradation of search result quality. However, there are methods to revert back to Google’s traditional search mechanism, as explained by Tedium’s technology editor, Ernie Smith. By appending “udm=14” to the end of your search query, you can filter out AI-generated content from your search results, effectively restoring Google to its former, pre-AI phase.
Since 2020, Google has increasingly adopted AI technology, positioning itself as a formidable rival to OpenAI. The tech giant launched Bard, later rebranded as Gemini, and gradually incorporated AI into a range of its products. The latest example is the “AI Overview feature” presented at the top of Google Search results.
However, this vigorous embrace of AI has been met with skepticism. Google’s novel AI answer feature has been notably snubbed online for displaying erroneous and misleading information. While Google is striving to address these errors, the damage has already been done. Tedium has even created a website devoted to purging Google of AI-driven content.
Another method to rid your Google search results of AI-influenced content is by filtering for only ‘Web’ results. After entering your query and clicking “Search,” a row of tabs labeled “Images”, “Videos”, “Shopping” etc., will appear. By clicking on “More,” you should see the “Web” option. By choosing “Web,” Google will only display links to website articles, thus excluding AI-driven content from your search results.
Local Image: A snapshot of Google’s “Web” filter. (Bloomberg via Getty Images). Source – The Chainsaw.
