Google gives NotebookLM a “Discover” button to search the web
Most of Google’s AI efforts thus far have involved adding generative features to existing products, but NotebookLM is different. Created by the Google Labs team, NotebookLM uses AI to analyze user-provided documents. Starting today, it will be even easier to use NotebookLM to explore topics, as Google has added a “Discover Sources” feature to let the app look up its own sources.
Previously, to create a new notebook, you had to feed the AI documents, web links, YouTube videos, or raw text. You can still do that, but you don’t have to with the addition of Discover functionality. Simply click the new button and tell NotebookLM what you’re interested in learning. Google says the app will consider “hundreds of potential web sources” in the blink of an eye, giving you the top ten from which to choose. There will be links available so you can peruse the suggestions before adding them to the model.
The sources you select will be ingested as if they were documents you uploaded, creating a conversant AI for your chosen topic. The content of those sources will also be loaded into NotebookLM so you can refer to them directly. That’s not why you use NotebookLM, though. You use NotebookLM for all the nifty AI-assisted features.
