Google has removed “What People Suggest,” a search feature that used AI to organize health perspectives from online discussions. The confirmation came as Google held its annual Check Up event, where it announced new AI health features for YouTube.
A Google spokesperson confirmed the removal to The Guardian, calling it part of a “broader simplification” of the search results page. The spokesperson said the decision was unrelated to the quality or safety of the feature. The Guardian also reported, citing three people familiar with the matter, that the feature was pulled after a trial run.
“What People Suggest” launched on mobile devices in the U.S. last year at Google’s annual health event, The Check Up. At the time, Karen DeSalvo, then Google’s chief health officer, said people value hearing from others who have experienced similar health conditions. DeSalvo retired in August and was succeeded by Dr. Michael Howell, who led this year’s Check Up announcements.
What Google Announced At The Check Up
At its 2026 Check Up event, Google announced AI health features across YouTube, Fitbit, and clinician education.
Google says health-related videos on YouTube have surpassed 1 trillion views globally. The company is adding an AI-powered “Ask” button on eligible health videos that lets viewers interact with the content.
Separately, Google is experimenting with AI to organize peer-reviewed scientific information and help present complex topics to broader audiences.
In the blog post, Howell said a central challenge has been connecting people to the right health information at the right time.
Google.org is committing $10 million to fund organizations that will reimagine clinician education for AI. The Council of Medical Specialty Societies and the American Academy of Nursing are the first partners.
Why This Matters
AI features in search results for health-related topics keep changing. Google pulled back one feature that showed forum-style perspectives and put new investment into medical education and structured video tools.
YouTube’s growing role in health-related AI Overviews is already documented. SE Ranking’s study of German health queries found YouTube was the most-cited domain in health AI Overviews, appearing more often than medical or government sites. Adding interactive AI on top of those videos could reinforce that pattern.
How We Got Here
Google’s AI features for health queries have faced pressure over the past year.
In January, the Guardian published an investigation that found health experts considered some AI Overview responses misleading for medical queries. Google disputed elements of the reporting but later removed AI Overviews for some specific health searches, including queries about liver function tests.
“What People Suggest” launched during the same period Google was expanding AI Overviews to thousands more health topics. Ahrefs data from November showed medical YMYL queries triggered AI Overviews 44.1% of the time, the highest rate among YMYL categories.
Looking Ahead
The pattern over the past year points to tighter guardrails around some health AI experiences. Whether that direction holds is less certain.
The removal of “What People Suggest,” and YouTube’s continued citation visibility in AI Overviews, could point that way. But Google’s track record with health-related AI features also shows these decisions can change quickly.
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