Google's AI Overviews now appear in 43% of searches: why AI is becoming the default way to search

Google's AI-generated summaries that appear at the top of search results, known as AI Overviews, have become central to the company's search experience. Newly published data shows these summaries now appear in 43% of all searches — a sharp rise compared to when the feature first launched.

AI Overviews work by scanning and summarising multiple web sources to produce a direct answer to a user's search query. Instead of clicking through a traditional list of blue links, users see a ready-made summary at the top of the page. This significantly speeds up the search experience, but it also means users can get the information they need without ever clicking through to the source.

The driving force behind this shift is directly tied to advances in large language models. Google is transforming its search engine from a traditional list of links into what is increasingly a kind of "answer engine." Company officials argue that this shift improves user satisfaction and lets people reach the information they're looking for much faster.

But the development is causing serious concern among web publishers and content creators. Search engine traffic has traditionally been one of the most important revenue sources for many news sites and blogs. When users read a summary and leave without ever visiting the site, ad revenue and subscription conversions for those sites are directly affected.

Some publishers report that the drop in click-through rates is especially pronounced for informational and explanatory content. Users asking simple "what is" or "how to" questions increasingly settle for the summary and never visit the site at all. This is forcing many publishers to rethink their content strategies.

In response to publisher concerns, Google argues that source links within AI Overviews have been made more visible. The company says it provides links to relevant websites below or alongside the summaries, and that this still drives some traffic. But many publishers say these links fall far short of compensating for the traffic once generated by direct clicks.

This trend isn't unique to Google — rival search engines and AI-powered chat assistants are evolving in a similar direction. Users are increasingly comfortable asking a question in a chat interface and getting a direct answer. This is upending some of the basic assumptions underlying search engine optimisation (SEO).

SEO experts argue that traditional keyword-focused strategies are no longer enough, and that content creators need to write in ways that increase the likelihood of being cited as a source by AI systems. This new approach is sometimes referred to as "optimising for AI," and it's quickly becoming a fast-growing consulting field.

Experts predict this transformation will only accelerate in the years ahead. The shift in user behaviour appears irreversible — once people get used to a faster way of accessing information, they're unlikely to go back to the old method.

The development also raises questions about the future of one of the internet's core business models: revenue generated per click. Publishers are increasingly turning to subscription and community-based strategies to diversify revenue and build direct relationships with readers, though this transition is not expected to be easy for everyone.