Circle to Search on Google Chrome desktop app will soon become a reality, new flag spotted

Circle to Search on Google Chrome is getting closer and closer to its general release. The premise of this feature is so good that after rolling it out for select Android devices, it’d be a waste if Google did not launch it for desktop users.

Eagle-eyed Chrome enthusiast @Leopeva64 shares on X a new flag to “enable Lens overlay,” spotted in Chrome Canary, its experimental channel. In case you missed it, Circle to Search on Google Chrome works through Google Lens, and you can either highlight the part of your desktop that you want to search, or you can click on any object and then it’ll automatically cut it out and highlight it for you.

We weren’t able to verify this independently and tested it ourselves (Canary v. 128.0.6544.0), however, but given how fast Google is moving to bring this feature to everyone, it’s a high chance that we’re getting closer to its general availability. The animation and everything else is just the same as its mobile version.

A few weeks back, folks in Chrome’s insider community spotted a few neat changes, hinting that Google is bringing this feature to the desktop.

The feature is so good that even Microsoft worked on its carbon copy, called “Circle to Copilot” and the same insider also said that the “Visual search” entry could be replaced by “Ask Copilot” in the screenshot tool’s quick menu, according to recent test in Edge Canary.