Google's AI-powered Search Generated Experience (SGE) powers a new set of shopping features designed to help users find niche or unique products for friends or themselves. These features include using artificial intelligence to generate gift ideas or fashion items and then letting you shop for them. Google will also expand virtual try-on functionality to male users ahead of the holiday season.


Starting today, U.S. users who have opted into SGE through Search Labs will see a list of suggested subcategories when searching for gift ideas, as well as links to content that will help them learn more about the product or gift category. For example, a search for "great gifts for home cooks" will bring up explorable subcategories like professional tools, handmade ingredients, cooking subscriptions, and cooking classes. Users can then click on these subcategories, browse shoppable gift options, and select products to purchase. This seems like a great way to expand your horizons when buying a gift for someone who has a special hobby or interest that you're not familiar with.

Maybe this will make you think twice about buying a crappy bath set for an unfamiliar relative

But what if you can picture exactly what you want, but you can’t find a real version of it that you can actually buy? A new feature from SGE is designed to solve this problem, allowing users to generate realistic images using text descriptions, such as "colorful, patterned jackets," and then find similar-looking real products online to purchase. Users can refine the prompts to ensure the resulting images meet their exact requirements, then scroll down to view similarly styled shoppable products from among the 35 billion listings on Google's shopping portal.

Google says the new feature will begin rolling out to U.S. SGE users' phones in December.

A mobile phone screen image showing off the new AI-powered shopping feature in Google's "search-generated experience," which saves you from having to manually search for your perfect jacket on specific clothing sites.

The last update isn't limited to SGE users, it's a small extension to Google's AI-powered virtual try-on tool. Starting today, men's tops from hundreds of brands including Abercrombie, Banana Republic, JCrew and Under Armor will be available for virtual try-on experiences, allowing users to see how a shirt or sweater will look on 40 models of varying skin tones, shapes, sizes and heights. The feature is currently limited to Google apps and mobile browsers in the U.S., but Google says it will be rolling out to desktop "soon."