Maybe you saw the stories. Google has a new head of its search division–who used to run its artificial intelligence group! So, obviously that means that Google is going to radically change direction to inject way more AI into search right? Um, maybe not.
Here are just a few reasons that this might not mean anything:
- Google is already doing it. Google has already invested massively in upgrading its search in many areas that people consider AI, ranging from advanced text analytics to machine learning. Maybe this is a trailing indicator rather than a leading one.
- It’s one person. The head of Google search is moving over from its AI unit, but the AI unit is not moving. People dramatically overestimate the effect of the leader on the organization. John Giannandrea is undoubtedly a smart guy, but he doesn’t do the research.
- It might be a career move. In a large company like Google, they move executives around who have succeeded so that they can have even greater impact. When I worked for IBM, Irving Wladowsky-Berger moved from IBM Research to its eBusiness unit. It didn’t mean that eBusiness was soon to be loaded with research technology. It meant that Irving was a brilliant guy who could make IBM more money outside of IBM Research.
It’s fun reading tea leaves and staring at entrails, especially when they are Google’s. But keep your eye on the ball. Search will get smarter no matter who the executive is, so smart marketers will continue to focus on making searchers happy with their content. As the search engine improves, the right content will be shown more and more.
