Definition: Google AI Overview

An AI-based explanation at the top of Google's results page. Launched in 2024, when announced the year before, it was known as Search Generative Experience (SGE). Based on Google's Gemini models, the AI Overview automatically generates a response to the question users ask in their day-to-day use of searching on Google.

Is the Overview Destroying the Web?
Traffic to websites on Google search has fallen dramatically since the advent of AI Overview because many of the questions users post are answered fully at the top of the results page. Although one might think Google is losing ad revenue from all the websites that users no longer go to, Google claims they are not shooting themselves in the foot, that the missing ad revenue it would normally have received from clicks to those websites has been shifted to ads directly on the results page.

Because Google and all other AI companies use the data they cull from websites in their AI models, Web publishers are increasingly blocking certain content from search engine spiders. In order to diversify, many publishers have expanded their content to email newsletters, mobile apps and social media channels to make up for the loss of organic search results. They are also promoting their brands more heavily so that people go to their websites directly instead of making a general request for information. See organic search results, Google search and Google Knowledge Graph.

What Is AI Overview?

In May 2025, this was the response to a Google search for "what is Google AI Overview?"