Ads Are Coming to Google Search’s AI Mode

As Google continues to revamp its search engine with AI Overviews and a new AI mode, the company is also starting to monetize these new AI features with ads. Yesterday, Google announced that it’s now testing ads in AI Mode, which is now available for all Google Search users in the US. Google is also expanding Search and Shopping ads in its AI Overviews to desktop users in the US.

For US users, AI Mode is now available as a separate tab in Google Search. Here, users can ask complex queries using natural language and go deeper through follow-up questions. Responses include links to web sources, but they will start to include sponsored results as well when they’re relevant.

“For example, someone may use AI Mode to search “how to build a website for a small business with limited resources”. They’ll get a comprehensive response with a step–by-step guide, tips and tricks on how to choose a product, connect with their audience, all the way to testing and launching. In some cases, a website builder might be a good next step, so we may show a helpful ad that can help them get started,” the company explained yesterday.

As for AI Overviews that show up at the top of search results in some markets, the desktop experience may now include ads for US users. Until now, only mobile users in the US were seeing ads in the ChatGPT-like answers, and Google said that users have been finding these ads “helpful because they can quickly connect with relevant businesses, products and services to take the next step at the exact moment they need them.” Later this year, the company plans to expand these ads to other English-speaking countries where AI Overviews are available.