Google has admitted that its AI-powered search is changing its own business. On its third-quarter 2026 earnings call, Google’s chief business officer Philipp Schindler linked slower search revenue growth to “lower monetization we were seeing in AI Mode.”
When the company that runs search says AI answers are changing how people search and click, brands should pay attention. This affects how your website gets found, how your search ads perform and what kind of content is worth making.
What Google reported
A few numbers from Google’s latest results, as reported by The Register and Search Engine Journal:
- Search revenue grew 12% year on year in Q3 2026, slower than earlier in the year.
- Paid clicks grew 8% year on year, down from 13% in each of the first two quarters.
- Schindler described many AI Mode queries as “upper funnel,” meaning people are earlier in their decision when they ask them.
Google’s VP of Data Science and UX Research for Search, Shivani Mohan, put it simply on Google’s Ads Decoded podcast: “What we’re seeing more and more of with AI is that people’s queries are kind of moving up the funnel.”
Google’s own US data from May 2026 also showed that AI Mode queries are around three times longer than traditional searches.
How common are AI Overviews now?
AI Overviews, the AI-written summaries at the top of Google results, now appear on a large share of searches. Search Engine Roundtable reported in October 2026 that tracking tools now see them on over 80% of searches. One tool, SE Ranking, measured 82.5% for US brand searches, while seoClarity saw a range of 55% to 84% depending on the industry.
Most of this tracking is based on US results. In Malaysia, AI Mode began rolling out in August 2025, so local users are seeing the same shift.
What this means for brands
People ask full questions, so answer full questions
Searches are getting longer and more specific. Instead of typing “chicken recipe,” people ask something closer to “easy chicken dinner for four that doesn’t need an oven.” AI answers draw on pages that actually address that kind of question.
A product page that only lists features and a price gives the AI little to work with. A page that explains how the product is used, who it suits and how it compares gives it much more.
Thin pages are a risk, even for ads
Search Engine Journal notes that Google’s AI Max campaigns can choose which page on your site to send people to. If your best page for a detailed question is a thin one, that’s the page shoppers may land on. Check your high-traffic pages for the details people need before they buy: comparisons, sizes, prices and use cases.
Real experience matters more than ever
Mohan also said that comparison shoppers “really don’t want to just see the summary.” They want input from people in similar situations. That’s an opening for brands that show real use: recipes tested in real kitchens, honest how-tos and content made by people who know the product.
AI-written content still needs a human check
Many brands now use AI to draft content. Google’s Search guidance, updated in October 2026, is clear: “It is critical to manually factcheck and review all AI-generated content for accuracy and trustworthiness before publishing.” Google also warns that generating many pages with AI without adding value for users can break its spam policy on scaled content abuse.
Search is no longer just typing
Google CEO Sundar Pichai said one in five AI Mode searches globally use voice, images or documents. For food and lifestyle brands, that makes good visuals and video part of your search presence, not only your social media.
What about search ads?
For brands running Google Ads, Search Engine Journal suggests treating AI Mode as its own test line, with a separate budget and success measure. It also notes that ads in AI Overviews are reportedly served only through broad match or keywordless campaign types such as AI Max, Performance Max, Shopping and Dynamic Search Ads. Keep an eye on longer search terms in your reports, so blended results don’t hide how they perform.
An example for a food brand
Say you sell a cooking sauce. A shopper asks Google, “What can I cook with a ready-made sauce on a busy weeknight?”
If your website only has a product page, there’s little for an AI answer to use. If it has a recipe page with clear steps, cooking time, servings and a short video, you’ve given Google something useful to draw on, and given the shopper a reason to choose your product.
A practical first step
- List ten questions customers ask before buying your product.
- Search them on Google and note what the AI answer says and which sites it cites.
- Pick the five most important questions and build one strong page for each, with real detail and, where it helps, a recipe or how-to video.
- Review every page with a human editor before publishing.
- Track impressions and clicks in Google Search Console for the next eight weeks.
How iCookAsia Digital can help
We help food brands build content that answers real questions, from website development and eBooks and digital content to recipe video production. If you want your brand to show up when customers ask Google what to cook, get in touch with our team.
Sources: Search Engine Journal, The Register, Search Engine Roundtable, Google Search Central, SoyaCincau.
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