Google tests Windows search tool via Alt Space and Lens in Labs

Google announced on Tuesday an experimental search app for Windows that lets users summon a compact Google search bar from anywhere on their PC with the Alt Space shortcut to find files, apps, Google Drive documents and web results without switching windows. The app, offered through Google Search Labs, is available in English to U.S. users on Windows 10 and later who are at least 13 years old and signed into a personal Google Account, and it must be enabled manually from the Labs page.

Google said the app combines local and online search, and includes Google Lens so users can select and query content displayed on their screen for tasks such as translating text or identifying images. An optional AI Mode provides deeper, AI powered responses with followup prompts and links for more comprehensive answers. The company described the goal as helping people "search without switching windows or interrupting your flow," whether they are writing in a document or playing a game.

The rollout is limited. Google said space in the program is constrained and the tool is experimental. The company did not label the app under its Gemini AI brand, though it acknowledged AI features and allowed...