Google Enhances AI Search Mode IBM Launches z17 Mainframe for AI Tasks

Post by: Elena Malik

Google and IBM Announce Big Steps in AI Technology

Google and IBM have both shared exciting updates this week — and both are all about making better use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) in ways that can help people do more with technology.

Google’s AI Mode Gets Smarter with Image Search
Google has added a powerful new feature to its AI Mode, which is a special version of Google Search. Now, users can not only ask questions with words but also upload pictures and ask questions about them.

This means if you take a photo with your phone, you can now ask Google questions based on what’s in that picture. This new tool is using technology from Google Lens, which helps understand what’s in photos.

Google says the AI Mode can look at everything in a picture — like objects, their shapes, colors, materials, and even how they are arranged. It also understands how different things in the picture relate to each other.

It uses a method called "query fan-out", where it asks many small questions about the photo to give the user more helpful and detailed answers than a normal search.

Example:
If you take a photo of your bookshelf and ask, “If I liked these, what are some similar books that are highly rated?” — the AI will first figure out which books are on your shelf, and then recommend similar books you might enjoy. It can even give you links to buy or read more about them.

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You can also continue the conversation. For example, you can ask, “Which of these books is the shortest?” — and the AI will narrow it down.

This updated AI Mode is now available to millions more people who are testing new Google features. Before this, it was only available to people using the paid version of Google’s AI tools.

AI Mode was only launched recently, but it's already becoming a strong competitor to other search tools, like ChatGPT and Perplexity. Google has said it will keep improving the experience and adding more helpful tools in the future.

IBM Launches Powerful New z17 Mainframe for AI Work
IBM has announced a new version of its large computer system, called the IBM z17. This new system is built to help companies do more with AI, and it’s expected to handle over 250 types of AI tasks, including things like chatbots and content generation.

Although some people might think mainframes are old technology, 71% of Fortune 500 companies still use them. The mainframe market was worth around $5.3 billion in 2024.

The z17 is much faster and smarter than the earlier version, the z16, which came out in 2022. It uses a chip called the Telum II processor and can carry out up to 450 billion operations in a single day — that’s 50% more than what z16 could do.

IBM worked on this new system for five years, even before the current AI boom began. They gathered feedback from over 100 customers to build it in a way that meets future AI needs.

The z17 supports a new AI accelerator called Spyre, with 48 chips at launch, and plans to increase that number to 96 within a year. This will allow the machine to handle even bigger and more advanced AI models.

Tina Tarquinio, a top IBM manager, said that one of the best parts of the z17 is that it uses much less energy than other similar machines, while being seven and a half times faster at handling AI work.

She explained that IBM has left space in the system to grow with future demands, since we don’t yet know all the ways AI will be used. The company wants to make sure it can support bigger models and smarter tools as the world of AI keeps changing.

The z17 will be officially available from June 8.

These two announcements from Google and IBM show how fast AI is changing — and how tech companies are working to make sure their tools are helpful, powerful, and ready for the future.

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