NotebookLM remains one of Google’s most impressive implementations of generative AI, allowing users to interact with their documents and notes using a Gemini-powered model. Last year, Google introduced “Audio Overviews”—AI-generated summaries of source material designed to mimic podcast-style explanations. Now, the company is testing this feature in Google Search, enabling users to listen to a synthesized conversation between two AI voices instead of reading search results.
How to Access Audio Overviews in Search
Currently, this feature isn’t widely available—it’s part of Google’s Search Labs, meaning users must manually enable it. Once opted in, an embedded audio player appears below the first few search results, just after the “People also ask” section. Unlike AI Overview text summaries (which appear at the top), the audio version requires a manual click on the “Generate” button. After a brief processing time, users hear a conversational recap of the search results, complete with adjustable playback speed and a list of sources.
Potential Pitfalls of AI-Generated Audio Summaries
While the feature works well for straightforward queries (like “How do noise-canceling headphones work?”), its accuracy may falter with complex topics. Unlike NotebookLM, where the AI is limited to user-provided documents, search-based Audio Overviews pull from a broader (and sometimes unreliable) pool of web data—raising the risk of misinformation. This mirrors the issues seen in Google’s text-based AI Overviews, which have faced criticism for hallucinations and inaccuracies.
The Future of Fake AI Podcasts
Google has been rapidly expanding Audio Overviews beyond NotebookLM, integrating them into Gemini’s Deep Research mode and Google Docs. Given the company’s aggressive AI rollout, it’s only a matter of time before this feature becomes a default part of Search—just as AI Overviews did after a short Labs trial.
For now, users can experiment with the feature by searching “Google Audio Overviews”—resulting in a surreal, self-referential explanation of the tool itself. Whether this innovation is “cool” or “creepy” likely depends on your tolerance for AI-generated voices debating in your search results.
