AEO and AI search

How do Google AI Overviews and AI Mode work?

IN SHORT

Google’s AI Overviews give a quick summary on the results page, with links to sources. AI Mode is a deeper conversational search experience for harder questions. Both may run query fan-out, many related searches at once. Google says a page needs to be indexed and eligible to show a snippet to be included, with no additional requirements.

By Kris Gjorgjioski, SEO and AEO: keyword research and industry benchmarksReviewed October 11, 20269 min read

Google says there are no additional requirements to appear in AI Overviews or AI Mode beyond being indexed and eligible for a snippet.
Both features may use query fan-out, which runs several related searches across subtopics.
AI Overviews do not appear for every query. Google says they appear when they add value beyond classic results.
Sites in these features appear in Search Console’s Performance report under the Web search type, with no separate AI report as of the source.

What the two features are

AI Overviews are AI-generated summaries that Google shows on some results pages, with links to sources for further reading. Google says they give a quick overview of complex topics. AI Mode is a separate way to search that handles deeper exploration, reasoning and comparisons, returning a detailed response with supporting links.

Both are part of Google Search, and Google describes both on its page about AI features and your website. That page is the best source, and it is updated, so check it for changes.

For a business owner the difference is simple. An overview appears alongside normal results for some queries. AI Mode is a place a searcher chooses to go when they want to explore a topic in several steps.

How they build an answer

Google says both features may use a technique called query fan-out. Instead of running one search for the typed question, the system breaks it into subtopics and runs multiple related searches across data sources. Google’s May 2025 announcement of AI Mode describes the same approach, and says its Deep Search mode can issue hundreds of searches for one question.

The result is that Google can show a wider and more diverse set of links than classic search. A page that would never rank for the exact typed question can still be useful for one of the sub-questions.

Google does not publish the full selection logic. What it does state is that these features are grounded in its search systems, and that links shown are to pages that are part of normal search. Our guide to query fan-out walks through how to cover sub-questions.

What makes your page eligible to be linked

Google’s documentation says a page is eligible as a supporting link if it is indexed and can appear in Search with a snippet. It states there are no additional requirements. Eligibility is not a promise: inclusion is not guaranteed.

It also says standard SEO practices apply, and lists them: allow crawling in robots.txt and in your CDN settings, use internal links, keep important content available as text, and make sure structured data matches the visible text. It says you do not need special files, markup or schema.

That last point is worth taking at face value. Do not buy a "special AI Overview file" or tool that claims to unlock a hidden channel. The documented route is ordinary, good search practice, as explained in how AI assistants choose sources.

What to write so your page is useful to the system

Google’s own guidance for site owners, published in May 2025, tells you to focus on unique, helpful content made for people, and to keep a good page experience. It also points to technical basics such as making sure content can be crawled and indexed.

For an answer-led approach, start the page with a direct two-sentence answer to the question the page targets. Follow with evidence, steps and detail. A system that fans out one question into five sub-questions then finds each sub-answer under its own clear heading.

Use plain facts that can be checked: prices that are current, service areas, processes with steps, and who wrote the page. Avoid padded introductions and claims you cannot source. Our guide to Google’s link to entities explains why clear identity also helps.

The controls you have

Google lists the controls. Robots.txt governs crawl access for Googlebot. The nosnippet and data-nosnippet attributes and max-snippet limit what Search can show from a page. Noindex keeps a page out of Search entirely. Google-Extended limits use of content for training and grounding in other Google systems, and does not affect Search.

These controls are blunt. Snippet limits affect your normal results as well as the AI features, and noindex removes you from everything. Use them for pages where showing content truly harms you, not as a general stance.

Google also notes that if preview controls are not taking effect, you should check with the URL Inspection tool and request a recrawl. Google says recrawling can take days to months, so plan for delay.

How to measure your presence

Google says traffic from AI features is included in Search Console’s Performance report under the Web search type. As of that documentation there is no separate AI filter, so you cannot isolate AI traffic cleanly from Search Console alone.

What you can do is track a fixed list of your commercial queries, search them on a regular schedule in both overviews and AI Mode, and note whether your pages are linked and whether your business is named. Record the date, the query and the result. Our measurement guide shows a simple method.

Be honest about noise. Results vary by person, location and time, and AI Overviews do not appear for every query. Look at trends across several weeks, not single checks.

What is changing, and what stays true

These features are new and Google changes them often. In its May 2025 announcement, Google reported that AI Overviews drove an over 10 percent increase in usage of Google for the queries that show them in the US and India, based on its own data. That is Google’s claim, and independent studies of click behavior vary.

Expect names, layouts and controls to change. What stays true is that Google’s systems need pages they can crawl, index and trust, and searchers still need a reason to choose you once they see your name.

Read the source documentation every quarter. Our AI crawler guide covers the access side, so that a firewall does not undo good content.

Examples by industry

Illustrative scenarios, not client results. Pick the one closest to your business.

B2B SOFTWARE AND STARTUPS
A fictional invoicing software company with comparison and how-to pages.. The team sees an AI Overview on its main query naming two competitors but not them.
1. Confirm the comparison page is indexed and not marked nosnippet.
2. Rewrite its opening to answer the buyer question in two sentences.
3. Add headings for the sub-questions the system might fan out into, such as pricing and integrations.
4. Log the query monthly and note whether the page is linked.
Takeaway: Eligibility came first. The rewrite made each sub-answer easy to find.
DENTAL AND HEALTH CLINICS
A fictional dental clinic with a page on emergency tooth care.. The clinic wants to appear for urgent local questions but has a cookie banner that hides the page text from simple crawlers.
1. Check the page with URL Inspection to see what Google renders.
2. Make the answer text part of the page content, not behind a script.
3. Add clear opening facts: hours, area covered and how to book.
4. Keep the markup consistent with what the page shows.
Takeaway: If the text is not available to Google, no feature can use it.
E-COMMERCE BRANDS
A fictional kitchenware retailer with long buying guides.. Guides bury the recommendation under several paragraphs of background.
1. Move the recommendation and criteria to the top of each guide.
2. Turn comparison criteria into headings that match common sub-questions.
3. Check that no important guide uses nosnippet.
4. Track five buying queries monthly in both features.
Takeaway: Structure for the sub-question, not for the keyword.

HOW WEBTEC DOES IT

How we work with Google’s AI features: how we do it

We treat them as part of search, because Google’s documentation does.

Check indexing, crawl access and snippet eligibility on your key pages first
Rewrite priority pages to answer the buyer question up front, with sources
Track a fixed query list in AI Overviews and AI Mode each month
Report what we observe and what we cannot measure, without guarantees

All AEO and AI search guides

Common mistakes

Chasing a special AI Overview file or tag. Google says no special markup or files are required.
Blocking Googlebot or adding noindex to opt out of the AI features, which also removes you from normal search.
Using nosnippet across the whole site and then wondering why click-through fell.
Judging results from a single search. Overviews vary by person, place and day, and do not appear for every query.
Writing long introductions before the answer, so the answer is buried far from the heading that asks the question.
Marking up facts that visitors cannot see, which breaks Google’s rule that structured data matches visible text.
Reading Search Console clicks alone and missing visibility that does not produce a click.

Checklist

Your key pages are indexed, which you confirmed with URL Inspection.
Googlebot is allowed in robots.txt and not challenged by your CDN.
You have not applied nosnippet or noindex to pages you want shown.
Each priority page starts with a direct answer to its target question.
Sub-questions appear as clear headings with their own short answers.
Structured data on the page matches the visible text.
You have a fixed list of queries you check every month, with dates recorded.
You read Google’s AI features documentation again each quarter.

Questions

How do AI Overviews work?

Google generates a short AI summary for some queries and links to sources. Google says both AI Overviews and AI Mode may use query fan-out, which runs several related searches across subtopics and data sources. That is why the links can be wider than a single ranked list. Overviews appear only when Google judges they add value beyond classic results, so many queries never show one. A page is eligible if it is indexed and can show a snippet.

What is the difference between AI Overviews and AI Mode?

AI Overviews are summaries that appear on some regular results pages, with links for further reading. AI Mode is a separate search experience for deeper exploration, reasoning and comparisons, with a longer response and supporting links. Both are described in Google’s documentation on AI features. Both may use query fan-out. For site owners the practical advice is the same: be indexed, be snippet-eligible and be the clearest answer to the question.

How do I get my website into AI Overviews?

Google says there are no additional requirements beyond being indexed and eligible to appear in Search with a snippet, and that no special markup is needed. So the work is standard search practice: allow crawling, use internal links, keep content available as text, answer questions clearly and match structured data to visible text. No one can guarantee inclusion, and anyone who sells a guaranteed placement is not describing how these features work.

Can I opt out of AI Overviews?

Only with blunt tools. Google lists nosnippet, data-nosnippet and max-snippet to limit what Search can show from a page, and noindex to keep it out of Search entirely. These also affect your normal results. Google-Extended does not opt you out of Search features, because Google says it does not affect inclusion in Search. Opt out only for pages where showing content truly harms your business.

Can I see AI Overview traffic in Search Console?

Partly. Google says traffic from AI features is included in the Performance report under the Web search type, but as of that documentation there is no separate filter for it. That means you cannot isolate it from normal search. Combine Search Console with a monthly manual check of a fixed query list, and with your analytics, to see engagement beyond clicks. Record what you cannot measure.

Is it worth optimizing for AI Overviews if clicks may fall?

Usually yes, because the work is the same work that supports normal search and every other assistant: clear answers, crawlable pages and a recognizable brand. Click behavior is debated and Google’s own claims, such as higher quality clicks, are not independently settled. Measure your own queries and leads rather than relying on general claims, and decide from your numbers.

Sources

Webtec reviews this page regularly. Search and platform features change, so check provider documentation for the latest. How we research and verify our guides.

Kris Gjorgjioski

SEO and AEO: keyword research and industry benchmarks. Runs keyword research and industry benchmarks at Webtec, and writes the Open Index, our sourced data on SEO and AI search.

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