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Google's ads move into AI answers

At Google Marketing Live 2026, Google leaned its whole ad stack on Gemini: new ad formats built for AI Search that answer a question and nudge toward a purchase, agentic shopping tools, and an assistant called Ask Advisor. The bigger shift is where attention goes. Roughly two-thirds of US Google searches now end without a click to any website, because the answer shows up on the results page itself.

Google also started rolling out a Generative AI report in Search Console, so you can see how often your site turns up in AI answers alongside the classic blue links.

For a small or mid-size business, the takeaway is simple: being on page one matters less than being in the answer. That means clear, well-structured content a machine can quote, which is the heart of Generative Engine Optimization, plus steady search and content work so you show up when it counts.

Further reading: original source ↗

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