AI literacy | Google isn't a verb anymore - is the way we research changing for good?

Whether people are fully conscious of it or not, the search engine Google has underpinned the way we work since the turn of the century.

From researching how to do something to asking the search engine a question that will inform your work, using Google as a tool has been so naturally ingrained to our working lives that it’s hard to imagine performing our work without it.

Yet, developments in technology – particularly Generative AI – have brought into question the usefulness of Google in the modern workplace, and if we should prepare ourselves for its gradual irrelevance. This is particularly relevant when we apply it to the way younger workers, such as Gen Z, use the internet to retrieve information.

A recent study suggests that younger workers are more likely to say ‘search’ for information instead of using the verb ‘Googling’. This may seem meaningless, but it points to the growing trend of young employees using a myriad of media outlets, social media apps, and new tech – like ChatGPT – to get the information they need to perform their jobs properly.