Google introduced Google Instant search Wednesday with results given to users as they type the letters of words — not even the words themselves. The change should save users 2 to 5 seconds per search, the company said.

"It's a fundamental shift to search, the speed and ease with which people can find information," said Melissa Mayer, Google's vice president of search products and user experience at a news conference which Google itself streamed on YouTube (which it owns).