Google is rolling out new layouts for the top stories section of the Google Search results. This includes not just the box carousel at the top but also double deckers, large image story with smaller image stories, and more variations.
Google tested some of these variations a year ago and also on mobile over a year ago.
Here are some screenshots from Twitter:
Here are more:
I believe some of this was demoed at the Search On event but not yet released – I personally cannot replicate this yet.
Update: I can now replicate this myself:
Update 2: Confirmed with Google, Google told us “We’re always working to make it easier for people to dive into the most useful, timely articles available through Search to help them form a better understanding of the world and the topics they care about most. This newly launched feature is the desktop version of the Top Stories experience you can already find on mobile. The desktop version will be available globally.”
Update 3: A day later Google announced it on Twitter:
