Ads can now appear above, below and sometimes inside AI Overviews and AI Mode, served through campaign types most advertisers already run. There's no separate opt-in. It makes feed and landing-page quality matter more, measurement a little murkier, and the old assumption that SEO and paid live in separate worlds less true than ever.
For a while, AI Overviews sat above the search results as an answer with no ads in it. That's changed. Google has expanded eligibility for ads inside AI Overviews and AI Mode through Performance Max, Shopping, broad match Search campaigns and AI Max for Search. Ads can appear above, below and in some cases within the AI-generated answer.
The important part for most advertisers: you don't opt into this separately. If you're running the eligible campaign types, you're already in - though where your ads can actually appear depends on the market you're advertising in.
Worth being precise, because coverage of this often isn't. Ads within the AI Overview are live in a limited set of markets - the US, Australia, Canada, India and Singapore among them - and the UK is not one of them yet. Ads above and below AI Overviews show wherever AI Overviews appear, which does include the UK. So if you're advertising in the UK, treat the in-answer placements as coming rather than current, and plan for them now.
Want to know how much of your spend is already flowing into AI surfaces - and whether it's working? That's day-to-day work for our team.
Why Google's doing it
AI Overviews answer more queries without a click. That's a problem for a business built on clicks. Putting ads inside the answer is how Google keeps the search business intact as behaviour shifts - and Capgemini's consumer research found 58% saying they use generative AI instead of traditional search for recommendations, so the shift is real.
What actually changes for you
- The answer is the competition. In a classic results page you compete with other ads. In an AI Overview you compete with the model's synthesised answer. Being the most relevant, best-structured option matters more.
- Feed and creative quality do more work. Shopping and PMax feed the AI surfaces. Clean titles, complete attributes and strong assets are what get you surfaced well.
- Measurement gets murkier. There is no segmented reporting for ads inside AI Overviews - they report as Top Ads, so you can't isolate them in your data at all. Lean harder on incrementality thinking and blended efficiency, not just last-click.
- Don't panic-exclude. The instinct to carve these placements out usually costs more than it saves. Watch performance first.
Search behaviour and the surfaces behind it are moving faster than the reporting.
Sources: Capgemini Research Institute (fieldwork Oct-Nov 2024, published Jan 2025); Ahrefs AI Overview citation study, 2026; Google Ads Help.What to do about it
Keep your feed hygiene ruthless, make sure your landing pages actually answer the query rather than just rank for it, watch search terms and placements as the data fills in, and treat measurement as a blend rather than a single number. This is a moment to be evidenced and calm, not to rip up the plan.
Nobody has fully worked out AI-surface attribution yet, us included. What we're doing is watching blended efficiency closely, keeping feeds and creative sharp so we're surfaced well, and being upfront with clients about what we can and can't see. Anyone claiming total clarity here is selling something.
If you want a read on how much of your spend is already flowing into AI surfaces, and whether it's pulling its weight, that's a natural part of a strategic review.
Frequently asked questions
How do I get my ads into AI Overviews?
You don't opt in separately. Ads become eligible for AI Overviews and AI Mode through Performance Max, Shopping, broad match Search and AI Max for Search. One caveat worth knowing: ads within the AI Overview itself are currently limited to twelve English-language markets - the US, Australia, Canada, India and Singapore among them - and the UK is not yet one of them. Ads above and below AI Overviews show wherever AI Overviews appear.
Can I opt out of AI Overview placements?
You can't. Google is explicit that there is no way to opt out of serving in AI Overviews, and no way to target the surface exclusively. Your levers are the ones you already have: negative keywords, feed quality, creative and landing-page relevance.
Does this change my budgets?
Not directly - it changes where impressions can appear, not your budget. But it can shift performance, so review efficiency as the data comes in rather than assuming like-for-like.
How do I measure ads in AI Overviews?
Placement-level reporting is still thin. Lean on blended efficiency and incrementality thinking rather than last-click, and treat AI-surface measurement as directional for now.