What Is Google AI Mode and How Will It Impact Search?

The phrase “AI Mode” kind of sounds like something you’d hear in a superhero movie. The hero says, “Computer, activate AI Mode!” And then the hero’s jet turns into a giant robot or something.

But thanks to Google, AI Mode is a real thing. (Sadly, it does not turn jets into giant robots.)

Instead, AI Mode refers to a new feature in Google search results that generates nothing but AI responses. As of this writing, AI Mode is still in the process of rolling out, but it’s good to get informed about it early. So, on this page, we’ll be going over the following topics:

• What is Google AI Mode?
• How to access Google AI Mode
• What are the future rollout plans for Google AI Mode?
• What does Google AI Mode mean for search?

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What is Google AI Mode?

Google AI Mode is a version of Google search results that focuses entirely on AI responses.

You’ve probably seen AI overviews at the top of some Google searches. But now imagine a search results page that’s nothing but AI overviews. That’s basically what AI mode looks like. Here’s an example image taken from Google’s blog:

You can also ask follow-up questions in AI Mode, letting you basically chat back and forth with the AI to get the answers you want. For that reason, AI Mode searches are arguably a lot more similar to ChatGPT than they are to traditional Google searches.

As of this writing, AI Mode hasn’t been rolled out to everyone yet. It’s still in testing at the moment, but there are ways you can try it out.

How to access Google AI Mode

AI Mode is available through Google Labs, where you can choose to opt in to using it. It’s pretty straightforward — you just go to Google’s AI Mode page and click “Join waitlist” to get started. Once you get approved, you should then be able to access AI Mode in Google by selecting it from the tabs at the top of the search results page.

What are the future rollout plans for Google AI Mode?

Google hasn’t issued any statement about their future rollout plans for AI Mode search. Presumably, they’ll make it available to everyone once they’re done with the testing stage, but it’s unclear when that will happen. We might be able to expect it later this year, or it might not happen until 2026.

What does Google AI Mode mean for search?

The introduction of AI Mode search will undoubtedly have an impact on the world of search engine optimization (SEO). But what kind of impact? How will it affect the way businesses optimize their website content for search results?

Here are the main three impacts of AI Mode:

1. Increased need for AI optimization
2. Spread of AI Mode to other search engines
3. Replacement of AI overviews

We’ll go into more detail about each of those below.

1. Increased need for AI optimization

For starters, AI Mode adds even more weight to the existing need to optimize for AI responses. Google already shows AI overviews at the top of some search results, so AI optimization is already important. But it’ll be a lot more important once AI Mode rolls out.

Some AI optimization strategies that will become more important include:

• Optimizing for voice search
• Optimizing for featured snippets
• Using business directories

2. Spread of AI Mode to other search engines

If AI Mode is a success (and maybe even if it’s not), you can expect plenty of other search engines — Bing, Yahoo, and more — to follow Google’s lead and create their own version of AI Mode. In fact, Bing has already done this with Copilot Search.

That means you can’t escape the importance of AI optimization by looking to other search engines. In time, most or all of the major search tools will be prioritizing AI searches to at least some degree, so you really can’t afford not to optimize for it.

3. Replacement of AI overviews

Some have speculated that AI Mode may become the new face of Google AI search, replacing the existing AI overviews that appear at the top of traditional search results. If so, traditional searches could be AI-free, with AI search moving fully to the new AI Mode tab.

It’s unclear what Google’s plan is regarding AI overviews. But if AI Mode is meant to replace them, it would mean searchers could go to the AI Mode tab if they want AI responses, but stick to the default search tab if they don’t.

That would have big ramifications for SEO, since businesses would no longer be competing with AI overviews in traditional search results. It could be a big win for companies who have been losing traffic to AI responses.

That doesn’t mean AI SEO would go away, though. There will no doubt be people who use AI Mode for most of their searches, and to reach those people, you’ll still have to optimize your content for Google AI search. But at least the line between traditional and AI search would be less muddled.

Of course, this is all hypothetical. Google hasn’t given any indication that AI Mode will replace AI overviews, so it could be that the two will coexist even once AI Mode officially rolls out. The best thing to do is wait and see what happens, and then adjust your SEO strategy accordingly.

Get help optimizing your site for Google AI search

AI Mode makes AI SEO more important than ever. But optimizing for AI responses is still a relatively new approach to SEO, and you might not be sure of the best way to go about it. If you’re looking for help, WebFX has your back.

As a leading SEO agency, we’ve been doing AI SEO for our clients for as long as AI search has been around. Even in that short time, we’ve mastered the ins and outs of AI optimization, even down to creating our own patented strategy — OmniSEO — dedicated to boosting your visibility across the Internet, including through AI tools.

Interested in partnering with us for our AI SEO services? Just give us a call at 888-601-5359 or contact us online today!