The Effect Google's AI Mode Will Have on Web-Based Business

Google has officially launched its new AI-powered search feature, known simply as AI Mode, in the UK.

It is distinctive as a result of its departure from the traditional blue link format that has characterised Google searches for more than two decades, delivering instead conversational responses generated by AI.

AI Mode is built on a specialised iteration of Google's Gemini 2.5 model, making it able to manage complex, multi-layered queries that would have challenged conventional search methods.

Already operational in the US and India, UK users will now observe it emerging as an additional tab within their search result pages.

Hema Budaraju, Vice President of Product Management for Search at Google, highlights a transformation in user search behaviour.

The era of meticulously constructed keyword phrases is being replaced by natural, conversational inquiries that reflect genuine user thought patterns and speech.

Hema says: "For example, you can now ask questions like: 'Things to do in Edinburgh this weekend with friends. We're big foodies who like music but also chill vibes and exploring off the beaten track.'

"Or: 'How do migrating birds know where to go?'"

It's a development that aims to cater for a gradual shift in the behaviour of internet users, with many people now opting to go straight to the likes of ChatGPT for immediate responses rather than having to navigate through search results.

Google's Gemini 2.5

Behind the scenes, AI Mode employs what Google terms a "query fan-out technique", fundamentally decomposing intricate questions into smaller components and conducting multiple searches concurrently.

This enables the system to explore web content more thoroughly than traditional keyword searches could achieve.

The functionality extends beyond text, incorporating voice queries and image uploads.

Users can photograph objects and pose questions about their observations, utilising the multimodal features that have gained prominence in AI development.

However, while Google produces more than two billion AI Overview boxes daily across more than 40 languages, the feature remains conspicuously unavailable in EU markets.

Consequently, European regulators have established a more restrictive framework for AI implementation, causing the bloc to lag in this competitive landscape.

The timing is significant as conventional search faces mounting pressure from AI-enhanced alternatives, requiring Google to adapt or risk losing its market dominance.

The company handles billions of daily queries, but this traffic increasingly faces competition from conversational AI platforms promising more direct, instantaneous responses.

The issue of web traffic and SEO

Google's UK expansion arrives as publishers grapple with a challenging reality: Google's current AI features are already reducing their web traffic.

According to the BBC, The Daily Mail reports click-through rates have halved since AI Overviews launched, a reduction that directly impacts advertising revenue.

Rosa Curling, Director of the campaign group Foxglove which commissioned the research, says she was concerned by what the increased use of AI might mean for news organisations.

The research indicates users click through to websites just once per 100 searches when AI summaries dominate the results page.

Google questions the research methodology, but the consequences concern publishers industry-wide.

Rosa told the BBC: "What the AI summary now does is makes sure that the readers' eyes stay on the Google web page.

"And the advertising revenue of those news outlets is being massively impacted."

This suggests that when users obtain answers directly from Google's AI without visiting source websites, the entire framework supporting online journalism faces disruption.

Consequently, publishers worry about becoming invisible intermediaries, their content extracted to train AI systems that subsequently render them obsolete.

Google has not yet disclosed how advertising will function within AI Mode, leaving businesses uncertain about future revenue prospects.

Traditional search permits companies to purchase premium positioning in results, but whether similar paid placement will exist within AI-generated responses remains unclear.

Hema contends that AI Mode creates new opportunities rather than merely cannibalising existing traffic.

She says: "I would say that I think people are going to use these technologies to unlock newer information-seeking journeys."

"These kind of questions didn't happen before and now you made it really possible for people to express anything a lot more naturally."

Google maintains that users actually visit more diverse websites when AI features are present and spend longer on the sites they do visit.

The company positions AI Mode as expanding rather than simply redistributing, though publishers remain sceptical.

The ethical and environmental considerations

The system incorporates protective measures, reverting to traditional search results when confidence in AI-generated responses falls below specific thresholds.

Google has made substantial investments in enhancing factual accuracy, though the company recognises the technology will not always produce correct results.

Environmental factors introduce additional complexity too. In order to function, AI systems require massive computational resources, located in data centres that consume enormous quantities of electricity and water.

As Google extends AI throughout its services, the environmental impact increases proportionally.