Google Discover finally coming to desktop too – now we'll never get any work done

Google Discover could be able to make the leap from your phone screen to your desktop, with users in Australia and New Zealand finding the curated stories on their Google homepage.

Google Discover emerged in 2018, replacing Google Feed, which had evolved out of the Google Now launcher dating all the way back to 2012. For most people, Google Discover sits off the side of the home screen on their Android device, meaning you can swipe into a curated selection of stories.

It’s an AI-driven service that learns from your search and browsing behaviour across Google and Chrome, so when you land on it, you’ll find stories relevant to your interests. For me that’s always a selection of tech stories, as I spend so much time on pages about tech.

Google has offered some sort of feed for many years, as it also lurks in the Google app on your phone. This applies both on Android and iPhone, giving Google a route to including some sort of Discover feed on iOS devices too.

You might also encounter it if you use Chrome on your iPhone, whenever you open a new browser page.

And it's this kind of experience that's also seemingly coming to desktop.

The details emerge from Android Authority, after reports of the addition surfaced with users in Australia and New Zealand. For those in other areas, the feature doesn’t appear to be live yet, but you can try it yourself here: https://www.google.com/?gl=nz

I managed to get it working and found a selection of stories that fit my normal search and reading patterns. In addition to stories from familiar titles, I spotted a sponsored entry in there too, which is presumably how Google is going to use this to make money.

In addition there’s an “at a glance” section to the right if there’s space in your browser window, with options for finance, sport and weather.

Why has Discover taken so long to come to desktop?

Why it's taken until now to arrive is a question that only Google can answer, but it might have something to do with the changes happening in how Google presents search results. When you search for something you’re often presented with an AI Overview. It might be that Google is looking for a way to serve up more natural results before you start the process right on your Google home screen.

I tested it on Chrome and Microsoft Edge browsers and found that Google Discover only appeared in Chrome, which makes sense. But the question is how many people actually head to the Google home page? I often put my queries straight into the search bar in a tab that’s already open.

I also have Chrome open on a set of pages I know I’ll use, so I don’t often see the Google search page directly.

That might not be a barrier, however: Microsoft has been feeding stories onto its home page for years in the guise of MSN. Google Discover will likely bring more clicks to those stories that get highlighted on desktop meaning there’s another distraction for those online.

There’s no word on wider rollout as yet, but I can’t see any reason why it won’t happen quickly.