Google’s AI Mode launches in the US

Has the future of search just landed? Potentially.

Google just launched its brand-new search experience ‘AI Mode’ in the US. AI Mode is Google’s conversational search engine – its answer to ChatGPT Search and Perplexity. No blue links. 100% AI results. And it’s big, big news.

If you’re in the US, you’ll already see a new ‘AI Mode’ tab under your search bar, while the rest of us can probably expect to see it soon. Clicking into AI Mode takes you to the interface below. It looks like a mix of Google’s AI Overviews, Gemini, Perplexity and ChatGPT. And from a quick test (using a VPN), it looks pretty good.

As part of her keynote at Google I/O 2025, Liz Reid (Google’s Head of Search) said: “This is the future of Google Search, a search that goes beyond information to intelligence”. And it really does feel like that. Gone are the days of searching through lists of results. Now search engines do the digging for you.

What does this mean for digital PR?

If top Googlers are saying this is the “future of search”, it probably is. Despite competitors like ChatGPT hitting the headlines, Google is still the (very) dominant player. It’s used by billions of people worldwide. And AI Mode will eventually be accessible to them all.

This is the next step in the evolution of AI search. It’s shaping how, where and what we search. And there are a lot of unknowns. Honestly, almost everything is an unknown. But here at Energy we’re confident that one thing will continue to be absolutely critical: Your brand.

A strong brand is futureproof and algorithm-proof. It doesn’t matter what search evolves into. If people know and trust your brand – you’ll get through it. 

New behavioural study into how people use AI Overviews

Sticking with AI (shocking, I know), Kevin Indig and Eric van Buskirk recently released a study analysing the impact of AI Overviews (AIOs) on user behaviour. And with the launch of AI Mode, understanding how people interact with AI search has never been more important.

The highlights of the study are:

• Click-through rates are much lower with AI Overview (two thirds lower on desktop and a half lower on mobile). People are getting the answers they need without visiting any websites.

• Most people never read past the first third of an AIO (7 in 10 people). If your brand is going to be visible, you need to be cited early doors.

• Decision making has changed. Brand authority is now the first step. Then how relevant the answer is to search intent. Then the wording of the AI copy.

• Reddit, YouTube and forums are still in demand. When people actually do click on search results, they’re looking for social proof.

What does this mean for digital PR?

I want to start by saying this research is brilliant. There’ve been so many studies looking at AI Overview visibility, click-through rates and general usage. But to be perfectly honest, they’ve not been particularly useful. Lots of sweeping statements and conflicting findings. But this one’s different. So once you finish reading this column – please give it a read. Here’s a link to where it was shared in Search Engine Journal too.

What does it all mean? It’s everything we predicted but couldn’t prove. AI generally answers queries very well, it (massively) reduces click through rates, and brand visibility is now far more important than traffic.

So strategies need to shift. Prioritising traffic from informational content is going to become a thing of the past. As reported in the Press Gazette, AIOs are causing drastic reductions in click-through rate for the Daily Mail. And AI Mode will likely decimate CTRs even further.