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Lumia MKT Team
Google is changing the way people search, and with it the way brands show up. October 2026 brought two updates every business owner should know about: Google started showing more links inside its AI answers and began testing personalized ads in AI Mode for people who connect their Gmail and Google Photos. In everyday terms: your SEO and your ads no longer compete only in the classic list of blue links, but inside a conversation.
Here is what changed, what is confirmed, what is still being tested, and what you should adjust in your strategy this quarter.
What Google AI Mode is, in plain English
AI Mode is a way of searching on Google where, instead of a list of links, you get a conversational answer generated by artificial intelligence, with sources, comparisons and the option to keep asking follow-up questions. Google introduced it in March 2025 and has been expanding it ever since. It is different from AI Overviews, which appear above the regular results.
For brands, the challenge is obvious: if the answer solves the question inside Google, when does the user click through to your site? That is why every change in how links and ads appear in these answers matters so much.
Update 1: more links, placed higher, in AI answers
On October 15, 2026, Google announced that it increased the number of links inside AI Mode and AI Overviews, and that they will now appear higher up in the answers. It is also testing a section that highlights links to official websites at the top of some answers, and it expanded news carousels to more countries and languages.
A practical note: Google did not publish click data for these changes, and in Search Console every link in an AI Overview shares the same position. Measure the impact with real traffic and conversions, not just rankings.
Update 2: AI Mode ads using Gmail and Photos data
On October 17, news broke that Google is testing ads in AI Mode for users of Personal Intelligence, the feature that connects Gmail and Google Photos to Search. According to Google, the ads are not based directly on the content of your email or photos, but the summaries and inferences the AI draws from that information can be used to show you ads. Sensitive categories are excluded.
Google updated its privacy policy, effective October 16, to reflect this. By default, content from Gmail, Drive and Photos is not used to personalize ads; that only changes if the user connects those apps to Search, and it can be turned off in settings. Personal Intelligence is rolling out as a beta for users 18 and older in most of the world, except the European Union, Switzerland, the United Kingdom and Nigeria.
Confirmed vs. testing: what we know about ads in AI Mode
| Status | What is there |
|---|---|
| Confirmed | Since 2025, Performance Max, Shopping and broad match Search campaigns (including AI Max) can show ads within or below AI Mode answers. |
| Confirmed | In 2026, Google announced new formats, such as conversational discovery ads and direct offers, labeled "Sponsored." |
| Testing | Personalized ads with Personal Intelligence (October 2026) and a small experiment with exact and phrase match. |
| Testing | Visual changes reported by users: blue ad headlines, up to three ads per answer and a visible site name. |
A telling data point: an SE Ranking study of more than 50,000 commercial searches in the United States found ads in at least 29% of AI Mode answers, and only 2.3% of the advertised pages also ranked organically for the same search. In other words, paid search and SEO are playing different games inside AI, and it pays to have both fronts covered.
What to change in your SEO and ads strategy this quarter
- Write to answer, not just to rank. AI answers cite clear sources: FAQs, honest comparisons, ballpark pricing and first-party data. That is the new SEO for search engines and artificial intelligence.
- Strengthen your official presence. A complete Google Business Profile, structured data on your website and consistent information across all your channels so AI recognizes you as the official source. It is the backbone of local SEO.
- Review your Google Ads campaigns. If you use exact match for everything, you are barely participating in AI Mode today. Work with your team on controlled tests with AI Max or Performance Max and well-optimized product feeds. That is how we approach Google Ads management at Lumia.
- Focus on the message, not just the keyword. In a conversation, the ad that best answers the intent wins. Clear copy, concrete offers and fast landing pages.
- Measure what matters. With less visibility into clicks from AI, track conversions, calls, WhatsApp messages and sales. If your analytics are not connected, that is step one.
The bottom line: search has become a conversation
Google is filling its AI answers with links and ads, and that opens an opportunity for brands that get ready before their competitors do. SEO and paid media are no longer silos: the same clarity about who you are, what you sell and why you are the best choice fuels your content, your ads and what AI says about you.
That is the foundation of the LUZ Method (LUZ means light in Spanish): organizing your brand's intelligence so it shines with the same light on every channel. Want to know how your brand shows up in AI answers today? Book a free strategy session and we will review it together.
Sources: LoopLoop, search news October 15 to 18 · Ripplix, ads in AI Mode · The Hacker News, Gmail and Photos data · Wikipedia, Google AI Mode. Features in testing may change; information current as of October 2026.
