Anthropic Expands Claude AI: Free Web Search for All, Voice Mode Begins Beta Testing
Anthropic is expanding the capabilities of its AI assistant, Claude, with two key updates announced on May 28, 2025. Web search is now available to all users free of charge, and a new voice interaction mode has entered beta testing on mobile devices.
Previously restricted to premium subscribers, Claude’s web search functionality now allows all users to access real-time information from the internet for queries, trend analysis, and research tasks. This broader availability is expected to increase adoption and provide valuable interaction data for refining Anthropic’s AI models.
At the same time, Anthropic is introducing a beta version of voice mode for its iOS and Android apps. This feature enables spoken conversations with Claude, supporting English and offering a tap-to-interact function for dynamic conversations. Users can seamlessly switch between voice and text input within a session.
Free users will have access to basic voice interactions, with a daily limit of 20–30 messages, while more advanced integrations—such as voice control for Google Docs, Gmail, Calendar, and web searches—will be reserved for paying subscribers. This tiered approach balances accessibility with premium feature incentives.
These enhancements follow the recent launch of the Claude 4 model family, including Opus 4 for complex tasks and Sonnet 4 for faster performance.
User Benefits
Free users now gain real-time web search access, significantly improving Claude’s utility. Voice mode introduces a more natural way to interact, making the AI more adaptable for various tasks and environments.
