Google to launch a jobs search engine in the U.S.

Google announced today it’s launching a jobs search engine in the U.S. The service will focus on all types of jobs – from entry-level and service industry positions to high-end professional jobs. It will also leverage Google technologies like machine learning and A.I. to better understand how jobs are classified and related, among other things.

Google CEO Sundar Pichai gave a brief preview of the job search engine, called “Google for Jobs,” at Google’s developer conference I/O this afternoon.

“46% of U.S. employers say they face talent shortages and have issues filling open job positions,” explained Pichai. “While job seekers may be looking for openings right next door – there’s a big disconnect here…We want to better connect employers and job seekers through a new initiative, Google for Jobs.”

In a few weeks, Google will begin to recognize when U.S. users are typing job search queries into Google Search, and will then highlight jobs that match the query. However, Google is not necessarily taking on traditional job search service providers with this launch – instead, it’s partnering with them.

The company said that Google for Jobs will initially partner with LinkedIn, Facebook, Careerbuilder Monster, Glassdoor, and other services.

The search engine will have a number of tools that will help you find the right jobs for you. For example, you’ll be able to filter jobs by location, title, category or type, date posted or whether it’s full or part-time, among other things.

The service will also show applicants things like commute time, to help them figure out if the job is too far away to consider.

What makes the service interesting is that it’s leveraging Google’s machine learning smarts to understand how job titles are related and cluster them together.

For instance, a search for “retail” could mean “retail associate” or “store clerk” or “store manager,” depending on how the employer wrote the job description. Google will be able to put all these together, so users who search for “retail” will see all matching job types.

Pichai also briefly mentioned a one-click “Apply” feature – showing how you could press a big blue button to submit your application – but didn’t go into the details as to how this would work.

Google spoke to hundreds of people before launching this search vertical, he also noted, to find out what their pain points were today with job search.

“I’m personally enthusiastic for this initiative because it addresses an important need and taps our core capabilities as a company from searching and organizing information to A.I. and machine learning,” said Pichai.

The company will roll out Google for Jobs within Search in the US in “the coming weeks”, with more countries coming in the future.