Google Image Search Unveils Badges

Finding new ways to break out of its traditional search methods is something that Google has been doing for the last nearly 20 years. Just 16 years ago, the search giant launched Google Image Search, which allowed people to find something based on the visual search of a particular image.

Now, Google announced news of a new feature to its Google Image Search offering in hopes of further enhancing its product. Available to those with the Google app for Android and mobile web, new badges will start to appear. Through these badges, people will be further assisted in discovering new pieces of information on product searches and other services — such as looking up a recipe — around the internet. A categorization along with action text will be attached to these badges to aid in the visual search process.

The goal of this new addition to the Google Image Search process is to help people make even more discoveries through a single tap. The categories assigned to each of the images found from a Google Image Search will share if there’s a recipe available or a way to make a purchase of a certain product on the page on which the image is hosted.

Some are viewing this new update as a direct response to the growing popularity of Google’s image competitor, Pinterest. In addition to this new offering, launched just after Pinterest’s search feature update, Google also recently added a “similar items” feature on its mobile and Android Search app to help people find related items via machine learning technology.

With Google somewhat becoming a follower instead of a leader in this scenario, it puts into question the search giant’s ability to innovate on its own without some sort of outside influence nudge.