Google has now confirmed that Reddit uses Gemini to power Reddit Answers, an internal AI search tool for Reddit users. Contrary to some early reports, a Google PR representative told Mashable that Reddit Answers was already integrated with Gemini prior to the announcement.
A beta version of Reddit Answers launched last December. And at the Google Cloud Next event on Wednesday, Google shared new details about how Reddit Answers works with Gemini. The tool uses Gemini "to help people more effectively find information, recommendations, discussions, and insights directly from the conversations and communities across Reddit," according to a press release.
Thanks to an existing partnership between Google and Reddit, which allows the latter to access Google Cloud's Vertex AI platform, Reddit Answers is powered by Google's Gemini AI model, among other tools. This means Reddit Answers has a similar AI search experience as Google tools using Gemini, like the standalone chatbot, Google Search's AI Overviews and AI Mode — except with answers sourced directly from the Reddit community.
"The integration of Vertex AI Search into Reddit Answers means users can find the information they need more quickly and accurately, and easily navigate to the conversations that matter to them," said Michael Clark, president of North America GTM at Google Cloud, in the press release.
The introduction of ChatGPT brought upheaval to the search world, and left Google scrambling to catch up in the AI arms race. A recent survey from media company Future found that up to 27 percent of U.S. searchers already use AI tools like ChatGPT instead of Google (though, the low-quality of recent Google Search results may also be a factor).
Google has made significant changes to its search engine in an effort to re-engage users. This includes features like AI Overviews and AI Mode, but also a licensing deal to train its models on Reddit content. After the Reddit-Google partnership was announced, Reddit's forum pages also became far more visible in Google Search.
With Gemini powering Reddit Answers, the companies are growing ever more entwined.
