Just like sponsored cards that appear in any normal Google Search results, ads are reportedly starting to creep into AI Mode searches.
According to a post on Twitter/X by Brodie Clark, Google is reportedly placing ads at the bottom of search results in the Gemini-powered AI Mode. Similar to those that appear in traditional searches, Google Search’s AI Mode is hiding ads at the very end of the page.
The sponsored cards are reportedly moving to the official build, outside of Google’s Labs experiments. They don’t replace the organic results that line the outside and top of the AI Mode search in the new update. Previously, organic link cards appeared on the side, though Google seems to be placing them within Gemini’s answer, above the new ads.
Google looks to be prioritizing organic link cards in this update, rather than sticking sponsored ads at the top of the Search page. That isn’t to say it won’t happen, as there’s limited information on how Google plans to unpack its ad strategy in AI Mode.
This comes as Google recently announced it would make it easier for users to hide sponsored results that appear in traditional searches. Those extra options don’t seem to extend to AI Mode. There doesn’t appear to be a “hide” button in the source images.
It’s unclear how long it will take for this change to roll out among users, though it seems to be appearing for a handful of users in a gradual rollout.
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