Google Announces AI Mode In Search, $250 AI Subscription, Smart Glasses, and More at I/O 2025 - 1

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Google Announces AI Mode In Search, $250 AI Subscription, Smart Glasses, and More at I/O 2025

  • Written by Andrea Miliani Former Tech News Expert
  • Fact-Checked by Sarah Frazier Former Content Manager

On Tuesday, Alphabet kicked off its annual Google I/O conference in Mountain View, California, and made multiple major announcements about upcoming technologies.

In a rush? Here are the quick facts:

  • Google launched a new $249.99 AI subscription called “Google AI Ultra.”
  • Users in the U.S. will be able to access AI Mode in Search.
  • The tech giant introduced its upcoming smart glasses.

The tech giant launched a new subscription service called “Google AI Ultra,” which includes access to multiple AI models and exclusive tools for $249.99, a new search feature called AI Mode, and new smart glasses equipped with cameras, microphones, and access to the Gemini AI model.

According to the official announcement , Google AI Ultra is the plan that offers the most advanced technology and the highest usage limits. For nearly $250 per month, users in the United States will receive YouTube Premium, early access to experimental products, and a suite of tools including Gemini, NotebookLM, and Whisk. The company expects to expand the service to more countries soon.

“We’re introducing Google AI Ultra, a new AI subscription plan with the highest usage limits and access to our most capable models and premium features,” states the document. “If you’re a filmmaker, developer, creative professional, or simply demand the absolute best of Google AI with the highest level of access, the Google AI Ultra plan is built for you — think of it as your VIP pass to Google AI.”

Google’s previous premium plan will now be called Google AI Pro and will add AI filmmaking features in Flow, which includes video tools such as Veo .

The new subscription plan competes with other AI companies’ offers, such as OpenAI’s $200 plan ChatGPT Pro , and Anthropic’s $200 Maximum Flexibility plan .

Last year, Google introduced AI Overviews, and a few months ago, the company began testing AI Mode—a more advanced and multimodal AI-powered search. During I/O, Google announced it’s now releasing an AI Model to the public in the United States.

Google showed a sneak peek of its upcoming smart glasses powered by Gemini and Android XR, along with Qualcomm and Samsung. The new device includes microphones, speakers, and cameras, offering users immersive experiences.

The tech giant also partnered with Warby Parker and Gentle Monster to develop the new technology and promised to share more updates on progress and device availability in the upcoming months.

Trump Signs Law Banning Deepfake Revenge Porn - 2

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Trump Signs Law Banning Deepfake Revenge Porn

  • Written by Kiara Fabbri Former Tech News Writer
  • Fact-Checked by Sarah Frazier Former Content Manager

President Trump signed a groundbreaking law Monday banning deepfake revenge porn and forcing social media to act quickly on victim reports.

In a rush? Here are the quick facts:

  • Offenders face up to 3 years in prison for non-consensual explicit content.
  • Websites must remove reported deepfakes within 48 hours.
  • The law has strong bipartisan support across Congress.

In a step toward online safety, President Donald Trump signed the Take It Down Act into law on Monday, as first reported by Bloomberg . The new legislation makes it a crime to knowingly post AI-generated sexually explicit images, also known as deepfakes , without the person’s consent.

“With the rise of AI image generation, countless women have been harassed with deepfakes and other explicit images distributed against their will,” Trump said during the White House Rose Garden ceremony, reports Bloomberg. “It’s just so horribly wrong […] and today, we’re making it totally illegal,” he added.

Under the law, offenders can face up to three years in prison. Social media companies and websites must remove the content within 48 hours of a victim’s report and make reasonable efforts to delete all copies. Platforms that fail to comply may face civil penalties.

“This legislation is a powerful step forward in our efforts to ensure that every American, especially young people, can feel better protected from their image or identity being abused,” said First Lady Melania Trump, who has championed the measure as part of her youth safety efforts. “Thank you all for coming together to prioritize people over politics.”

AOL reports that the bill passed Congress with overwhelming bipartisan support, and gained backing from both Republicans and Democrats. Notable sponsors included Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas) and Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), along with Reps. Elvira Salazar (R-Fla.) and Madeline Dean (D-Pa.).

Bloomberg notes, however, that tech leaders like Meta and Google have supported the bill, while others raised concerns about free speech.

Al Jazeera reports that the Electronic Frontier Foundation warned that the law’s rules for taking down flagged content could threaten “free expression, user privacy, and due process, without addressing the problem it claims to solve.”

“Lawful content – including satire, journalism, and political speech – could be wrongly censored,” the group said in a February statement, according to Al Jazeera .

AOL reports that supporters argue the law respects First Amendment rights by targeting only content that would mislead a “reasonable person.”