- Google is testing a homepage design similar to Bing and Yahoo, resembling its mobile app’s “Google Discover” newsfeed.
- The new design features news articles selected by Google’s algorithms, with quality variations over time.
- The outcome of this experiment is uncertain, and it may remain optional, aligning the desktop site with the mobile app.
Google is testing a new homepage design that is similar to the news-focused interfaces of its rivals Bing and Yahoo. The experiment was spotted by MSPoweruser and features a homepage that looks more like the “Google Discover” newsfeed found on the Google mobile app. The new design includes rows of news articles that Google has algorithmically detected will interest users, often with wild month-to-month quality swings in the sites it promotes. To the right of the newsfeed is a stack of “at a glance” cards featuring sports scores, stocks, and the weather.
This change makes Google look a lot busier and more like Bing and Yahoo. However, it is still unclear whether this experiment will lead to any major changes to the homepage. The last experiment Google conducted filled the usually stark white page with info cards showing things like the weather and stocks. It is possible that this new experiment could go nowhere and might never see a wide launch. Even if it does launch, it could just be an optional setting or alternative mode of Google.com, with the traditional white page still as an option.
It is interesting to note that the mobile app and desktop website are now very different. If Google Discover has some kind of success, it is possible that the company will continue to experiment with the desktop website to make it more like the mobile app.
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