Google is rolling out a major upgrade to its popular Circle to Search feature, bringing deeper AI-powered capabilities to Android devices. Originally introduced with the Galaxy S24 Ultra, the feature allowed users to circle, highlight or scribble on anything appearing on their screen—whether in apps, videos or social media posts—to instantly search for related information. Until now, most results were drawn from traditional image search, offering visual matches and basic links.
The latest update, now reaching users according to Android Authority, significantly expands Circle to Search’s intelligence by introducing Google’s AI Mode into the experience. This enhancement enables the tool to answer follow-up questions more accurately, provide richer context and deliver detailed explanations beyond simple visual matches.
With AI Mode enabled, users can now perform conversational queries about whatever they circled. For example, circling a product can lead to deeper comparisons, price insights or descriptions of how it is used. Highlighting a location in a video could return historical background, travel tips or related points of interest. Even complex items—like equipment shown in tutorials or objects seen in fast-moving clips—can be understood with greater accuracy thanks to Google’s improved multimodal analysis.
This shift moves Circle to Search beyond simple image recognition into a more dynamic, AI-assisted discovery tool. According to early users, responses now feel closer to interacting with Google’s Gemini-powered assistant, offering contextual answers rather than static search results.
The update is especially helpful for users browsing visually heavy platforms such as Instagram Reels, TikTok, YouTube Shorts and Pinterest. Instead of pausing and manually describing what they see, they can quickly circle the object and ask follow-up questions directly on screen. This reduces friction and enhances overall search efficiency.
As the update continues rolling out, Android users can expect Circle to Search to become more accurate, more conversational and significantly more useful for real-time learning. Google’s broader vision centers on making AI a native part of everyday navigation—allowing users to interact with information visually, instantly and naturally.
With this upgrade, Circle to Search transforms from a clever shortcut into a powerful AI-first feature positioned to redefine how people discover information on their phones.
