Google is testing a redesigned search bar in its mobile app that replaces the word "Search" with "Ask Google," according to screenshots posted this week. The redesign is live for at least one user and was documented on X and Android Authority on May 30, 2025, by Akshay Gangwar of AssembleDebug.

This is a test, not a confirmed rollout. I do not see the new bar on my own device. Google has not commented on the change. That gap matters.

What exactly changed in the bar?

Three visual differences separate the new design from the old one:

• The prompt text reads "Ask Google" instead of "Search."
• A "+" sign sits inside the bar for uploads.
• The bar is white rather than gray, thinner, and positioned higher on the page.

Gangwar described the scope of the change directly. He wrote: "Google app search bar redesign now rolling out with new plus button for uploads, Nano Banana, and AI Mode."

Note his verb choice. He said "rolling out," not "testing." One observer's rollout can still be a limited experiment. Google routinely ships interface changes to small user slices before it kills them. Without Google confirmation, treat the extent as unknown.

The "Nano Banana" reference points to Google's generative image tool. Its appearance in a search bar caption suggests the bar now routes users toward image creation and multimodal input, not only text queries.

Why does the wording matter?

The shift from "Search" to "Ask Google" is small on screen and large in intent. It reframes the input field as a conversational surface. That framing aligns with AI Mode, Google's chat-style search experience, which the company has expanded aggressively across app and desktop surfaces this year.

The "+" button reinforces the same direction. Uploads feed multimodal queries — images, files, screenshots — into AI processing. The old bar was built for ten blue links. The new bar appears built for prompts.

Takeaway: the interface now speaks the language of prompts, not queries.

Confirmed versus unconfirmed

Separate the two signal types here.

Confirmed by evidence: Screenshots show the new bar exists. Gangwar posted a before-and-after comparison on X, with the prior gray bar on the left and the white redesign on the right. Android Authority published his findings.

Not confirmed: The rollout scope, the launch date, and Google's intent. Google has issued no statement. No percentage of users has the feature, because nobody has measured one. Whether "Ask Google" replaces "Search" permanently remains speculation.

Who should watch this?

Publishers and search marketers should track the wording change closely. If "Ask Google" becomes the default prompt across hundreds of millions of Android devices, it will train users to write longer, conversational queries. Longer queries feed AI Overviews and AI Mode. Those surfaces answer questions without a click.

The direction is consistent and unmistakable. Google keeps pushing more users toward AI features, and each interface nudge — a renamed bar, a plus button, a higher placement — moves behavior in that direction.

What comes next

Watch three things in the coming weeks: wider availability of the "Ask Google" wording in the Google app, any appearance of the same prompt on the mobile web at google.com, and Google commentary if it announces the change officially. If the bar reaches stable Google app builds, the conversational prompt stops being an experiment and becomes the default front door to search.

By Elena Vasquez