You Can Try These New Google I/O Features for Free Right Now

Google announced a lot of updates at I/O 2026. The company's first modern smart glasses (dubbed "Intelligent Eyewear) are coming later this year, as is Google's Universal Cart shopping assistant. There's even a brand-new AI model, Omni, that can create any output from any input, which should do wonders for our AI-generated misinformation problem. But not everything Google announced on Tuesday is available now (or for free, for that matter). Most of the new Workspace features, for example, require some type of subscription, as do many of the AI enhancements coming down the pike. If you want to test out Omni today, you can, but you need to pay for one of Google's AI subscriptions.

The good news, however, is that there are some features and changes Google announced at I/O that you can try out right now, without paying a dime. These are new adjustments to apps and services you may use every day, like Google Search, the Gemini app, or Gemini itself. While Google does have more free I/O features coming later this year (and as soon as this summer), these are the announcements you can experience today:

Gemini 3.5 Flash is now in Google search and the Gemini app

Google I/O 2026 was all about AI. As such, one of the biggest announcements from the keynote was Gemini 3.5 Flash, the latest update to Google's Gemini model. It's the first model in the Gemini 3.5 family, as Google says it's still working on Gemini 3.5 Pro.

According to Google, Gemini 3.5 Flash competes with other flagship AI models "on multiple dimensions." The company says that 3.5 Flash outperforms 3.1 Pro in coding and agentic benchmarks, and is an industry leader in multimodal understanding. Because it's a "Flash" model, it's designed to be quicker than other models that prioritize performance over speed. To that point, Google says 3.5 Flash is four times faster than other "frontier" models.

Taken at its word, Gemini 3.5 Flash is an option for just about anyone who uses AI. If you're a developer, Google says 3.5 Flash will save you time and money, as it's frequently less than half the cost of comparable models. But for the rest of us who don't use AI for coding or developing, Gemini 3.5 will be most accessible in Google Search and the Gemini app. As of Tuesday, this is the model powering Google's flagship AI products, so if you've used Gemini in the past 24 hours, you've likely used 3.5 Flash.

Google's new AI "Intelligent Search" box is already rolling out

There are a lot of changes coming to Google Search, many of which fundamentally change how the platform functions. Google wants Search to be a true AI-powered experience, focusing more on interacting with AI Mode and AI Overviews than on the individual links and sources those answers pull from. As sites continue to lose traffic due to these AI updates, it isn't an exaggeration to say this new approach may change the web forever.

Those major changes are coming next week. Today, however, there are other changes you'll notice when using Google Search. Of course, you now know that the underlying AI model powering AI Mode and AI Overviews is Gemini 3.5 Flash, but that's far from the only change. Perhaps the most notable update is the new "Intelligent Search" box. When you select "AI Mode" in the Search box, Google taps into Gemini 3.5 Flash to offer AI-powered suggestions as you type. As advertised, the feature seems intended for more conversational searches, rather than quick queries. Things like "I'm looking for a new hobby and am interested in pottery." As you type, Google might suggest the following: "Is wheel throwing or hand building easier to learn?" The idea is to guess what you're going to ask to save time, or suggest search terms you might not have thought of yourself. The feature is multimodal too, so you can search with images, files, videos, or Chrome tabs, in addition to text.

Google started rolling out the feature to users on Tuesday, so it could be live on your end, but it may take some time. (As of this article, I don't see it yet.)

AI Mode just got easier to use

AI Overviews are divisive: While many might find them convenient for quick results, others criticize the tool's accuracy. (Don't forget that AI Overviews once recommended putting glue on pizza to keep the cheese from falling off.) However, if you do enjoy using Google AI Search tools, you might like this next change.

On Tuesday, Google rolled out an update to AI Overviews that makes it easier to jump right into AI Mode from the results. Now, when you get an AI Overview, you can choose to expand it, which features a chat box at the bottom of the window. You can use this to jump into a "conversation" through AI Mode, if you want to continue asking questions about the subject.

More Search features are coming this summer

Google has a slew of new Search features coming later this summer, too. Google AI Pro and Ultra subscribers will be able to try "information agents," which keep an eye on certain topics, sales, or trends and alert you when things change. Free and paid users alike will be able to use agents to book things, including restaurant reservations and private karaoke rooms, directly in Search. In addition, Google is rolling out Universal Cart this summer for everyone, which lets you add items from multiple stores into one digital cart.

But perhaps the biggest update for free users, in my view, is agentic coding. Google will use Gemini 3.5 Flash to build interactive elements in real-time based on your queries. If you're asking about black holes, Google may build you a demo that you can play with to see how they work. These will also roll out this summer for free.

The Gemini app's got a "Neural Expressive" design update

In addition to running Gemini 3.5 Flash, the Gemini app gets a new visual design refresh. Google is calling this "Neural Expressive," featuring new animations, colors, typography, and haptic feedback. It definitely has a different look than the original Gemini app, or Google's usual design scheme at that, so if you're interested in UI refreshes, you can check that out today.

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