Google’s AI Overviews have moved from experiment to default. As of mid-2025 they appeared in nearly half of all search results, and by June 2025 they showed in 13.5 percent of SERPs tracked across six retail categories, up from 5.2 percent in January [3]. The shift is not just visual. It changes where ads appear, how many show up, and how much each query earns. Advertisers who treat this as a cosmetic update risk misallocating budget.
Google admits AI Mode earns less per query
On Alphabet’s Q3 2026 earnings call, chief business officer Philipp Schindler stated directly that “strong growth in AI Mode queries had an impact because of the lower monetization we were seeing in AI Mode” [6]. Google Search and other advertising revenue still reached about $63.3 billion, up 12 percent year over year, but the mix is shifting toward a format that pays less per question [4][6]. Two factors drive the gap: AI Mode shows fewer ads than a classic results page, and the advertising value per query is lower [6]. The exact size of the per-query revenue difference remains undisclosed [6].
Ad presence inside Overviews is growing but uneven
GrowByData tracked daily SERPs across Apparel, Beauty, Computer, Food & Beverage, Home Furnishing, and Toys from January to June 2025 [3]. Ads inside AI Overviews were almost absent until May, when Google began full-scale monetization. By June, 9.4 percent of detected AI Overviews contained ads. Most of those ads (80 percent plus) appear below the AI-generated answer box, while a consistent 18 to 20 percent appear above it [3]. Vertical differences are stark: Beauty & Personal Care reached 20 percent daily ad presence in June, while Toys rarely exceeded 10 percent [3]. Home Furnishing showed high volatility in April, ranging from 1.2 to 6 percent daily, before stabilizing above 15 percent by June [3].
No placement reporting makes optimization blind
Despite serving ads inside AI Overviews, Google provides no segmentation for AIO-specific impressions or clicks, and no breakdown of above-versus-below placement [3]. Advertisers running campaigns have very little information on whether their ads are showing inside the AI layer at all [3]. This blind spot makes budget optimization and ROI modeling nearly impossible in AI-powered search [3]. Third-party SERP tracking tools have stepped in to fill the gap, offering daily share-of-voice, placement mapping, and volatility detection [3].
Performance impact varies by industry and device
Adthena analyzed data from hundreds of thousands of advertisers and more than five million ads across six industries from late December 2025 to January 2026 [5]. The findings show a fragmented landscape. Technology queries featuring an AI Overview consistently show higher CPCs than those without, signaling a visibility tax [5]. Telecom and Technology show persistently lower CTRs when an Overview is present, representing a direct drain on the traffic pipeline [5]. Financial Services and Retail show narrower CTR gaps, suggesting users in these sectors still prioritize ads over the AI summary [5]. On desktop, Technology and Education queries are heavily saturated with Overviews, meaning ads almost always compete with a summary [5]. Mobile Overviews appear less frequently but displace ads more aggressively when they do show, due to limited screen real estate [5].
Some brands are already seeing revenue hold or grow
Measured analyzed trends across 139 brands and found median incremental revenue and orders both grew while spend remained flat after AI Overviews rolled out broadly in September 2025 [1]. Brands that also measure retail in-store revenue saw even stronger results, with retail iROAS climbing from $1.35 to $1.47 in Q1 2026 [1]. The difference: these brands understood that AI Overviews concentrate higher-intent traffic and adjusted strategy toward the post-research click [1].
Practical steps for advertisers
First, implement daily SERP tracking for your target keywords to detect when AI Overviews appear and whether ads are present above or below the answer box [3]. Second, segment performance by device and query intent — comparison queries in Telecom and Technology behave differently from informational queries in Healthcare and Financial Services [5]. Third, monitor CTR and CPC trends at the query level, not just the campaign level, to spot the visibility tax early [5]. Fourth, test creative and bidding strategies specifically for the post-Overview click, where intent is often higher [1]. Fifth, pressure Google or your measurement partner for placement-level reporting; without it, any ROAS model for AI Mode is built on assumptions [3].
The monetization gap is real, but it is not a death sentence for search advertising. It is a structural change that rewards granular visibility and punishes aggregate assumptions. Advertisers who adapt their measurement to the new surface will capture the higher-intent traffic that AI Overviews concentrate. Those who wait for Google to fix the reporting gap will keep optimizing blind.
Sources
- Ads in AI Overviews: The New Paid Search Surface
- Google expands AI Search ads globally as core ad growth slows
- Google AI Mode Ads Earn Less: $63.3B Search [2026]
- The revenue impact of Google’s AI Overviews - LinkedIn
- The Impact of Google AI Overviews on Search Performance
- What industry data reveals about the impact of Google’s AI Overviews on …
- How Will Google’s AI Search Engine Disrupt Its Ad Revenue?
- How Google’s AI Overviews are accelerating change in paid search
