
Google has officially introduced a new AI-powered search feature in the United Kingdom, marking a significant transformation in how users interact with the world’s most popular search engine.
Unlike the traditional list of blue links leading to external websites, this new feature—called AI Mode—delivers conversational answers generated by artificial intelligence, offering a more natural and simplified user experience. While the classic search format remains active, this AI-enhanced tool introduces a different, more intuitive way to ask and receive information.
What Is Google’s AI Mode?
AI Mode is built on Google’s Gemini AI platform and is designed to provide quick, context-rich answers to more complex or natural-language questions. The feature has already been launched in the United States and India, and is now gradually rolling out to UK users.
Instead of keyword-based queries like “clean carpet stain,” users can now enter more specific and nuanced questions, such as, “I spilled coffee on my Berber carpet—what’s a pet-friendly cleaner?”
According to Google Search Central, this shift reflects the company’s goal of improving user experience by understanding intent, not just keywords.
AI Summaries vs. Traditional Search Results
AI Mode provides a streamlined summary at the top of the results page, often with fewer outbound links. While these summaries can still include sources and location-based data, they generally push links to external websites further down the page—raising concerns across industries that rely on organic search traffic.
Google emphasizes that AI Mode is optional for now. Users will see it as a separate tab or an option within the search bar interface.
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Why Businesses and Publishers Are Concerned
A report from the Daily Mail reveals a significant drop—up to 50%—in referral traffic from Google Search since the AI Overview feature began rolling out. News publishers, eCommerce platforms, and service-based websites that depend heavily on SEO-driven traffic are now questioning their visibility in the AI-generated landscape.
“What the AI summary now does is make sure that the readers’ eyes stay on the Google web page,” said Rosa Curling, director of digital rights group Foxglove, which advocates for fair and transparent tech policies.
Monetization Still Unclear
Hema Budaraju, product lead for Google Search, stated that ad placement and monetization strategies within AI Mode are still under development. She acknowledged businesses’ concerns but maintained that AI tools can enable deeper information-seeking behavior and help users express more complex queries naturally.
“These kinds of questions didn’t happen before, and now we’re making it possible for people to express themselves more naturally,” Budaraju said in an interview.
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Potential Environmental Impact of AI
AI technologies, including Gemini, require massive data center operations, which can be energy- and water-intensive. Google says it remains committed to sustainable AI practices, though critics urge more transparency around environmental impact.
Read more about AI’s environmental cost via Nature.
Impact on News & Click-Through Rates
According to a study by the Pew Research Center, when AI summaries appear on the search results page, users only click through to source links 1% of the time. Although Google disputes the accuracy of this data, many in the media sector fear that fewer clicks mean declining revenue and visibility.
Conclusion: A Paradigm Shift in Search Behavior
Google’s AI Mode represents more than just a feature update—it signals a paradigm shift in digital discovery. As search behavior evolves, content creators, marketers, and publishers will need to adapt to a new SEO environment that prioritizes context, user intent, and AI-driven summaries.
Whether this change leads to more efficient information delivery or undermines the open web remains to be seen. But one thing is clear: the age of AI-powered search has officially begun in the UK.
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Priyanshu Raj, I have worked in social media and content writing for many years. I have also worked in WordPress website development. I am very interested in technology, especially smartphones and AI, so I created this website.