Chrome could soon let you ask Google about anything on your screen — even outside the browser

(Image credit: Future) Google is testing an “Ask Google from anywhere” experience in Chrome Canary for Windows that can bring up a floating search box even when you are working in another app. Press Alt + Space, and you can ask Google a question without first opening Chrome or switching back to a browser window.Sound familiar? Google already offers a similar experience through its standalone Google app for Windows, which uses the same Alt + Space shortcut to summon a floating launcher with Search, AI Mode and Google Lens capabilities. Now it appears to be experimenting with bringing that idea directly into Chrome itself.There is an important caveat: Google has not said the two are connected, and the Chrome version remains a Canary-level experiment rather than a feature rolling out to everyone. But it offers a revealing look at where Google could be taking Chrome next.What 'Ask Google from anywhere' actually does (Image credit: Getty Images)Known in development as the “Everywhere Omnibox” under Project Loom, the experiment gives Chrome a floating search interface that can appear on top of whatever else you happen to be doing on your computer.Instead of opening a Chrome window or new tab to start a search, users can press Alt + Space to bring up the floating bar while working in another app. The shortcut can also be changed through Chrome's settings.The latest version makes Google's plans for the feature a little clearer. The interface now uses the language “Ask Google from anywhere” and tells users they can share part or all of their screen and ask Google about what they are looking at.That could eventually make Google Lens and AI-powered search available without forcing you to leave whatever app you are using. However, those pieces aren't all working in the interface yet. Lens and AI Mode buttons aren't currently visible in the bar, making this very much a work in progress.Sign up to the Tom's AI Guide weekly newsletter summing up all the biggest AI news you need to know. Plus, analysis from our AI editors and tips on how to use the latest AI tools!Having déjà vu? (Image credit: Google)This idea isn't new. The standalone Google app for Windows already lets users press Alt + Space to bring up Google without first opening a browser.That app combines traditional Search with AI Mode and Google Lens and can search local files, installed apps, and Google Drive. It can also use Lens to ask questions about something on your screen.The similarities make Chrome's experiment more interesting. Both give Google a way to appear on top of whatever you are doing in Windows, both use Alt + Space, and both aim to reduce the need to stop what you're doing and head back to a traditional Google search page.Google has not said that Project Loom is intended to replace its Windows app or that the two projects are directly connected, so it is too early to know how they might fit together.Still, putting a similar experience inside Chrome would mean people who already have the browser running wouldn't necessarily need a separate Google app to summon Search from elsewhere on their computer.Bottom line: Chrome is starting to escape the browserChrome has traditionally waited for you to open the browser before you can use it. Search in Chrome reverses that relationship by letting Chrome come to you, even while you're working somewhere else.It also fits with Google's broader push to bring AI features closer to whatever users are already doing rather than making them continually jump between webpages, apps and AI tools.Whether Google ultimately ships “Ask Google from anywhere” in this form is another question. The feature is still being tested in Canary, and Google could change it significantly or abandon parts of it before it ever reaches the stable version of Chrome.That said, it's clear that Google wants Search, Lens and eventually its AI tools to be available without making you stop what you're doing and head back to a browser tab.Follow Tom's Guide on Google News and add us as a preferred source to get our up-to-date news, analysis, and reviews in your feeds. Subscribe to Tom's Guide on YouTube and follow us on TikTok. 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