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What are Google AI Overviews (AIO)?
AI Overviews (also referred to as AIO) are AI-generated summaries that appear on Google Search results pages. AIO is triggered by search queries and pulls its information from sources around the web. Unlike other Google Search page features like ‘featured snippets’ and ‘people also ask’, which show one or two sentences extracted from a single website/source, AI Overviews consolidates information from multiple websites and sources to create an extensive summary or answer to a search query.
AIO essentially makes Google no longer just a Search Engine but also an Answer Engine operating similarly to other LLM AI tools like ChatGPT.
A sample of Google AI Overview. Search result for the query: is new york hot in the summer
What is Google AI Mode?
AI Mode is a feature that provides/generates even more answers to search queries. In AI Mode, a user can ask follow-up questions. It can search the web for information and summarize that information into clear answers, summaries, and even subtopics that take into account user intent. AI Mode is powered by Google’s Gemini 2.5 model. According to Google, in AI Mode, “you can ask anything on your mind and get a helpful AI-powered response with the ability to go further with follow-up questions and helpful web links”. AI Mode functions like a chatbot where people can start a query and ask follow-up questions. According to Google CEO Sundar Pichai, AI Mode is a “total reimagining of search”.
A sample of Google AI Mode. AI Mode search results for: is new york hot in the summer
Impact of AIO and AI Mode on Publisher Traffic
Google’s AI Mode and AIO have left publishers wondering what the impact would be on Search, which publishers rely on for traffic, and Google relies on for half of its sales revenue. (Google’s search business generated nearly $200 billion in 2024, which was more than half of its total sales). AI Mode is an LLM that poses serious questions about the impact it will have on publisher traffic, and LLMs are known to produce content without redirecting users to the original source through backlinks. Here are some things to keep in mind:
- AIO has been reported to Spam problem. “Google is apparently not using any type of fact-checking or consensus mechanism to generate or verify its answers”. This means, at the very least, Google will continue to iterate and change how AIO ranks publisher content.
- The Pew Research Center’s recent report shows that users are less likely to click links when an AI summary appears in search results.
- AIOs are impacting CTR for major sites and their leading keywords. A survey shows that desktop CTRs can fall by two-thirds when there is an AIO answer. Mobile is less impacted but still loses about half of its clicks.
- Currently, the best possible scenario for publishers to combat the rise of zero search clicks is to show at the top of the links included in AIOs. According to Google, links included in AIOs get more clicks than if the page had appeared in traditional search, but this is unconfirmed, and we are seeing results from research that shows that there has been a massive increase in zero-click searches. Google also claims that “users stay on websites longer after being referred from AI Overviews.”
- Which industries/content types are being affected the most by AIO? Science, Health, People & Society. (Note: this might change)
Industries by SERPs (search engine results page) with AI Share range (source: Semrush)
SEO FOR AIO (AI Overviews): How to Optimise for AIO
It’s still not clear how AI overviews work and how they rank content. The data on the impact of AI Overviews on Search CTR is hard to find because Google is yet to provide clear data on AIO CTRs. There are studies done by third parties, close observations, and industry speculations, but there is no concrete understanding of how it works or the direction these AI engines would take.
Given how new and unpredictable AIO is, there are no established best practices or comprehensive optimization tools. However, here are some things you can start to do to make your site more likely to show up on AI Overviews in Search.
- First, check if your site has AI visibility. Use the top AI search tools: ChatGPT, Perplexity, Gemini, and Claude. Search your ranking keywords and see if you show up, and search your site name. This will give you an idea of if and how you show up on AI search engines
Optimize your content structure with schema markup, FAQs, and semantic tagging.
Make your content tone mirror the way people ask questions to boost the chance of showing up in AIOs. - Branded searches have been shown to be the most resilient to Google AI Overviews. This adds more credence to the importance of having a strong brand identity and producing unique content.
- Try to insert your brand names into your content in definitive ways to show your content is unique.
- Focus on high-frequency search terms that include your brand name.
- Observe your content that’s currently showing up on AIOs and see how you can reinforce any unique qualities into other articles. Use tools like Semrush AI Toolkit.
- So far, AIOs are not triggered for hard news queries. So, take any chance you have to create trending content.
- For long-term strategy, see how you can expand on trending content, as that seems like the least vulnerable right now, and with the coming changes to AI search engines.
- While you fortify your content with keywords that withstand being overrun with AIOs, structure your evergreen articles and landing pages for machine comprehension. This means using subheadings, FAQs, bulleted points, and answering questions directly with precise and unambiguous language.
- Third-party tools like the Semrush AI tool can help with estimates.
Informational content is most likely to trigger AIOs. According to Semrush, “88.1% of queries that trigger an AI Overview are informational.” - Semrush study also shows that AIO overviews are showing up for low-competition and fact-based queries.
- There is emerging research on how key phrase data can be pulled from AI chatbots, which would help with optimization efforts. Read more here
- Remember, even in this new AI-dominated search landscape, the tried and tested best practices still hold true: produce quality content.
- In today’s shifting landscape, cultivating a loyal audience and strong brand presence is more critical than ever. Publishers who’ve built engaged communities and loyal audiences through newsletters, multi-platform presence, and diversified traffic sources are better positioned to weather the volatility of the Search landscape.
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