TL;DR
Are ads coming to Google AI Mode outside the US?
Google said it will show ads in AI Mode, its chat-style search, outside the US for the first time. If you buy Google ads, your ads may start showing up inside AI answers. Watch your Google Ads account for new AI placements and check where your clicks come from.
What did Google announce about AI Mode ads?
Google shared the news on Alphabet's third-quarter earnings call on October 28, 2026. Philipp Schindler, Google's chief business officer, said the company is "scaling high-quality ads within AI overviews in AI mode to more users and queries," and that "this includes taking our monetization footprint global for the first time," TechCrunch reported.
Three changes came out of the call:
- Ads in AI Mode are going international. Until now they ran in the US only. Google didn't say which countries come first or when.
- Multi-turn ads in the US. These are ads that can show up as you keep asking follow-up questions in the same AI Mode chat, not only after your first search.
- More ads in AI Overviews, the AI summary boxes at the top of regular Google results, for more people and more kinds of searches.
The push builds on the Gemini-powered ad formats Google announced in May, such as ads that answer a shopper's question and sponsored picks placed inside AI answers.
Why is Google adding ads to AI Mode now?
Because AI answers are growing faster than they're earning. Alphabet's revenue hit US$127.6 billion for the quarter, up 25% from a year earlier. Search and other revenue rose 12% to US$63.35 billion. That's solid, but TechCrunch notes it was 17% growth in the second quarter and 19% in the first.
On the call, Google's chief business officer said the fast growth of AI Mode searches weighed on the number, because AI Mode was making less money per search than classic results, according to a clip posted by The Transcript. He added that Google feels "very good" about where this is heading.
Meanwhile people are using AI search more. Sundar Pichai, Google's CEO, said AI Mode questions run three times longer than regular searches, and one in five AI Mode searches uses voice, images or documents. He also said overall Search query growth is at its highest in five years.
Investors weren't thrilled. TechCrunch said Alphabet shares fell 8% after the results, while CNBC reported a drop of more than 10% in after-hours trading. Google Cloud was the bright spot, more than doubling to US$30.7 billion.
What do AI Mode ads mean for small businesses?
If you pay for Google ads, AI Mode is turning into another place your ad can run. Google says click-through rates (the share of people who click after seeing a listing) for sponsored product listings in AI Mode are already about the same as for regular, unpaid listings. That's Google's own number, so treat it as a promise to check against your results.
If you don't buy ads, the change still matters. AI answers that carry ads leave less room on the screen for free results, so some of the traffic you get from Google today may shift. Google is also letting outside apps work inside Search and Gemini through its new Connected Apps Platform, which means more of a shopper's trip could happen without a visit to your site.
Outside the US, there's nothing to switch on yet. Google hasn't named countries or dates.
X reactions
Pichai posted his headline numbers right after the results, and market-news accounts picked up the AI Mode ads news within the hour.
Our take
This was always where AI Mode was going. Google runs on ads, and a search box that answers everything without ads would slowly eat its own lunch. The surprise is how openly Google admitted that AI answers earn less right now. That's a company in a hurry to fix the math, and the fix is more ad slots inside the answers.
For small advertisers, early is usually cheap, because fewer rivals are bidding on a new placement. But "comparable click-through rates" comes from Google, with no data shown. Run a small test, measure sales instead of clicks, and don't move your whole budget on a quote from an earnings call.
— Artificially Nerdy
What to do this week
- Check your Google Ads campaigns for any new AI Overviews or AI Mode placement options, and note which campaigns already show there.
- Look at your search traffic in Google Search Console and Analytics, and save this month's numbers so you can spot a shift later.
- Advertisers outside the US: nothing to change yet. Watch your Google Ads account for an announcement for your country.
- Write ads that answer a question. AI Mode questions are longer, so plain answers to "which one should I buy" will fit better than slogans.
- Software makers: see whether your app could plug into Search and Gemini through Google's Connected Apps Platform.
FAQ
Can I turn off ads in Google AI Mode as a user?
Google didn't mention any setting to hide them. Ads in AI Overviews and AI Mode are part of the product, the same way ads sit above regular results.
Do I need a new campaign to show up in AI Mode?
Google didn't spell out campaign steps on the call. So far it has said the ads expand to more users and queries, so check your current campaign settings for AI placements before building anything new.
How big is the Gemini app now?
Pichai said the Gemini app has reached 1 billion users. Gemini is Google's AI assistant, and it's separate from AI Mode, which lives inside Google Search.
Did Google say AI Mode ads will hurt organic traffic?
No. Google said sponsored listings get clicks at about the same rate as organic ones. It didn't share any figure on how AI answers affect clicks to websites.
Sources
- Alphabet: third-quarter 2026 results — official revenue, Search, Services and Cloud figures.
- Alphabet SEC exhibit 99.1 — the filed version of the earnings release.
- Sundar Pichai's Q3 2026 earnings remarks — Gemini app users and Search usage claims.
- TechCrunch: Google expands AI Search ads globally as core ad growth slows — Schindler's call quote, click-through claim, earlier Search growth rates, 8% share drop.
- CNBC: Alphabet Q3 2026 earnings — the after-hours share move of more than 10%.
- The Transcript on X — the chief business officer's comment that AI Mode earns less per search for now.
- Sundar Pichai on X and First Squawk on X — October 28, 2026, posts (4:05pm and 4:44pm ET).
- Google: Ads in AI Mode expand to new markets — Google's announcement and the lead image.
