Google AI Mode
Also called AI Mode, Google AI search mode.
Google AI Mode is a separate tab in Google Search where people ask longer questions and get a written answer with links, then ask follow ups like a chat. It runs on a custom Gemini model and draws on Google's search index. Google opened it to everyone in the US in May 2025.
Doug's Field Guide · Updated
How AI Mode differs from AI Overviews
An AI Overview is a summary that sometimes appears on top of a normal results page. AI Mode is a whole search experience you choose to open. People use it for questions that need comparison or reasoning, like 'which HVAC companies near me service Carrier heat pumps and offer financing', and then keep asking.
Google says AI Mode uses query fan-out. It splits the question into subtopics, runs many searches at once, and puts the results together. Each follow up can pull in new sources. So a business with one strong home page and nothing else has fewer chances to show up than one with clear pages on services, brands, financing, areas and prices.
Google describes AI Mode as rooted in its core ranking and quality systems, and the rules for being linked are the same as for overviews: the page must be indexed and eligible for a snippet.
What to do about it
Think about the second and third question, not just the first. A customer who asks about heat pump repair will next ask about cost, brands, warranty and how soon. Answer each of those on your site in plain words, ideally on the page for that service. Keep your Google Business Profile complete, since local answers lean on it for hours, reviews and location.
Search Console includes AI Mode clicks and impressions in the normal Web report, without a separate filter. To see where you stand, open AI Mode, ask your customers' real questions with follow ups, and note if you're linked or named. Repeat it weekly with the same questions, since answers shift as Google updates its models and results.
Test AI Mode with a real customer question
- Open AI Mode in Google and ask the question your best customer asked before hiring you.
- Ask two follow ups they'd likely ask, such as cost and how soon.
- Note which businesses and sites are named at each step.
- Add the answer to the follow up you're weakest on to your service page.
Common mistakes
- Treating AI Mode as the same thing as AI Overviews and only checking the first question.
- Answering price and timing questions with 'call for a quote', which gives AI Mode nothing to use.
- Letting Google Business Profile hours and services go stale while working on the website.
How Doug does it
Doug checks Google every week, including AI Overviews and AI Mode, with the questions your customers ask, and records if you're named and which sources are cited. The gaps go into your fix queue with the pages, FAQ answers and profile fixes drafted.
Terms on this page
- Gemini
- Google's family of AI models and the name of its assistant app. Custom Gemini models also write AI Overviews and AI Mode answers in Google Search.
- Query fan-out
- When an AI search feature splits one question into several related searches and combines the results. Google says AI Overviews and AI Mode may use it.
Keep exploring
- Google AI OverviewsThe AI summary Google writes above the results, and how your pages get linked in it.
- Google Business ProfileYour free listing on Google Search and Maps, and the first thing a local customer sees.
- FAQ pagesThe questions customers ask on the phone, each with one short, clear answer.
- The weekly visibility checkEach week he asks the assistants your customers' questions and counts your mentions.
Sources
- Google Search Central: AI features and your website
- Google: Expanding AI Overviews and introducing AI Mode
- Google: AI Mode in Search (May 2025)
Written by Doug's team from these sources and our own work with local businesses. Search engines change their rules, so check the source before a big decision.
