Google itself is abandonware at this point. All of their services have bugs every single day. UI feels unpolished. And God forbid you have to talk to support. Some dude in India who doesn't understand English responds through email and keeps repeating the same script.
Even Search, the rumors are true, has really gotten worse. After hearing about it here, I did a Kagi trial and didn't hesitate to buy a year of unlimited searches when it was up.
It's hard to quantify the difference but Kagi really feels like it's working with me instead of just trying to sell me garbage.
This is hyperbole. Search has 100% gotten so much worse. But 99% of the time, even for technical questions, I can find the correct result on the first page. If I don't, for example in cases where the names clash like the word atlas that has a ton of results, I can add a word of additional context and get the correct result
The fact they are planning to drop the cache feature makes you wonder if Search might be heading for the Google Graveyard eventually.
I know it seemed unthinkable for most of Google's history. For the longest time Search was Google. But now...
We must consider the fact that Google is essentially a user data broker. All their products are in various proportions collecting user data and/or serving ads.
If Search quality and features keep reducing then its usage and relevance will drop too, reducing its effectiveness at both data collecting and ad serving.
I don't think Google's DNA allows them to consider radical alternatives. They were born in an era when data automation was in its infancy and they rode it all the way to the top. They abhor the human touch, the manual intervention. Their services are set to function automatically, set and forget.
But AI is changing the automation landscape, it's bringing a transformative paradigm shift. It's irresistible bait for Google but it will ruin Search. They'll deal with it the only way they know how, drop it.
