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Google Puts More Links in AI Mode and AI Overviews and Tests a Box for "Official" Pages. Search Console Still Hides the Clicks

TL;DR: What did Google change in AI Mode and AI Overviews on 15 October 2026?

Google is putting more inline links into its AI answers and showing them higher up. It's also testing a section at the top of some answers that highlights the one or two "official" pages you need to complete a task, with a note on why each one helps. News carousels are spreading to more countries and languages, related-article links get thumbnails, and AI Mode is testing clickable creator names. What hasn't changed: Search Console still shows you impressions from AI answers, but not clicks. So be the page Google calls official, and measure the clicks yourself.
For two years, founders who live on organic traffic have watched Google's AI answers eat their clicks. This week Google announced it's sending more people back to websites.
Some of it matters for small sites, and some of it is aimed at big publishers. One part, the new "official page" section, could favour startups that own a clear task: signing up, pricing, booking, documentation. Here's what changed, what the click data says, and what to do about it.

What happened

On 15 October 2026, Hema Budaraju, Google's VP of Product Management for Search, announced five updates to AI Mode and AI Overviews. Google says the goal is to make exploring the web "simpler, more visual, and more engaging". Nick Fox, Google's SVP of Knowledge and Information, promoted them on X as updates to "help you find links to click out and dive deeper", as quoted by BetaNews.
  • More inline links, placed higher. Google says it has made "continued and substantial increases" to inline links, the links embedded in words or phrases of an AI answer. It's now showing them higher up in responses more often.
  • A section for official pages (test). When there are "only one or two official places on the web" to complete a task or get the exact information, Google will test showing those links in a dedicated section at the top of the answer, with context about why each link is useful.
  • News carousels in more places. The carousels of timely articles are rolling out to more locations and languages, show up on a wider range of queries, and highlight the reader's Preferred Sources.
  • Bigger related-article links. The links at the end of some AI answers get image thumbnails and "a more clickable design".
  • Clickable creator names (test). On video results in AI Mode, Google started testing creator and publisher names that open their Google Search profile.
Google also said the number of people using Preferred Sources, which lets users pick the sites they want to see more of, has grown more than 7x since the start of the year. On the same day it said more than 400 publications, including Axios, CNN, the Financial Times and Forbes, now take part in its News AI pilot, in which Google pays publishers "for the delivery and use of enhanced content". A day later, Search Engine Land reported that Google has started testing ads in AI Mode for users who turned on Personal Intelligence.
ChangeStatusWhat it means for a small site
Inline links, placed higherRolling outMore chances of a click if you're cited
Section for 1–2 official pagesTestRewards the page that owns a task: your signup, pricing or docs
News carousels, more countriesRolling outMostly publishers; Preferred Sources get highlighted
Related links with thumbnailsRolling outImages matter more for clicks at the end of answers
Clickable creator names in AI Mode videosTestLinks to a Google profile page, not your site; US, Canada, India only
Sources: Google blog, 15 October 2026; Google Search Help, "Create a new Search profile", read 17 October 2026.

The catch: you still can't count the clicks

Google is telling site owners its AI answers send more traffic. It still won't show them how much. Search Console's generative AI performance reports, launched on 3 June 2026 and rolled out to all websites worldwide by 31 August, count impressions in AI Overviews and AI Mode. They don't count clicks. Google says it's working with site owners on what would help, "such as adding additional metrics over time". There's no date.
"But will searchers click? I suspect not," Barry Schwartz wrote in Search Engine Land, "otherwise Google would give us click data broken down in the AI performance reports in Google Search Console."
The independent data explains the doubt:
  • Ahrefs (4 February 2026): across 300,000 keywords, an AI Overview correlates with a 58% lower average click-through rate for the top-ranking page, comparing December 2025 with December 2023. Its April 2025 study found 34.5%.
  • Seer Interactive (24 April 2026): organic CTR on queries with an AI Overview fell from 3.19% in January 2025 to 1.31% in December 2025, then recovered to 2.36% in February 2026. Seer's data covers 53 brands and 2.43 billion organic impressions.
  • Pew Research (July 2025): users clicked a result in 8% of visits when an AI summary appeared, against 15% without one, and clicked a link inside the summary in only 1% of visits.
The most useful number for founders is in Seer's study: being cited inside the AI Overview roughly doubles your click-through rate compared with not being cited. More inline links means more slots to be cited in.
We've seen the measurement problem from other angles this month: ChatGPT visits landing in Direct after the referrer disappeared, and poisoned results breaking rank trackers. If your SEO reporting already feels like guesswork, you're not imagining it.

Why the "official page" test matters for startups

Most of this update helps people who already win: big publishers in news carousels, creators with 10,000 followers in Search profiles. The official-page section is different. Google describes it as an expansion of what it already does when someone wants to go to a particular site, and it's about tasks, not authority.
Google hasn't said how it decides which pages are "official". Our reading: if someone asks how to cancel your plan, connect your API or book your service, the answer should be your page, not a Reddit thread or a review site. That only works if those pages exist, are indexable and say clearly what they do. Many early-stage startups hide pricing in a PDF, put docs behind a login, or leave signup steps to a chatbot. Those are the gaps this test exposes.
It also connects to topical depth. Pages that answer one task completely are easier to cite than long pages that answer everything a little. Our 90-day plan for topical authority shows how to build those clusters on a small budget.

The European angle

Google's announcement doesn't name countries for the new link features, but most of its AI answers now reach Europe:
  • AI Overviews came to Austria, Belgium, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Poland, Portugal, Spain and Switzerland on 25 March 2025.
  • AI Mode expanded to more than 40 new countries and territories on 7 October 2025, "including many across Europe", according to Google.
  • France came last. Google France announced AI Overviews and AI Mode there in July 2026, together with a Search Console control, available in France, that lets sites choose whether to appear in generative AI features. Google says this control isn't used as a ranking signal outside those features.
  • Search profiles are only available in Canada, India and the United States, so the clickable creator names don't help EU founders yet.
  • Ads in AI Mode are being tested only for Personal Intelligence users, a feature Google launched for English-language AI Pro and Ultra subscribers in the US.
Regulators are watching the same clicks. On 9 December 2025 the European Commission opened a formal antitrust investigation into whether Google uses publishers' content for AI Overviews and AI Mode without appropriate compensation and without letting publishers refuse "without losing access to Google Search". Status: investigation open, no decision. The European Publishers Council filed its own complaint in February 2026. More links in AI answers is also a useful argument for Google to make while that case runs, so expect more changes like this one.

What this means for you

  1. Own your tasks. List the five things customers search for about your product: pricing, signup, cancel, integrations, support. Give each one a public, indexable page with a clear title that says what it does. That's your shot at the official-page section. Our technical SEO checklist for startup websites covers indexability.
  2. Write to be cited, not just to rank. Inline links point to pages that answer one specific point. Short, direct answers, clear headings, tables and FAQs make that easier. Our guide on writing SEO content that converts has the structure.
  3. Add the Preferred Sources button. Google's Preferred Sources documentation gives site owners an "Add to preferred sources" button and a deeplink. Google says it's available globally for Top Stories in every language where Search is available. To appear as a preferred source in AI Overviews and AI Mode, your site must be included in Search generative AI features in Search Console. Only domains and subdomains qualify, not subfolders.
  4. Watch AI impressions weekly. Search Console won't give you AI clicks, but impressions show whether you're being surfaced at all. If you've never set up the reports, start with our Search Console guide for startups.
  5. Measure clicks yourself. Compare landing-page sessions and signups against AI impressions over time. Revenue is the only number Google can't blur.
  6. Don't bet the company on Google. Even with more links, AI answers keep many users on the results page. Build an email list and a second channel. For a lean SEO plan that assumes fewer clicks, read how to rank on Google with zero budget, and for this month's other changes, see our SEO news for October 2026.
LeverWhat it doesWorks in the EU?
Official task pages (signup, pricing, docs)Candidates for Google's new official-page sectionTest; Google hasn't named countries
Preferred Sources buttonLets readers choose to see more of your siteYes: global for Top Stories
Search profileClickable creator name in AI Mode videosNo: Canada, India, US only
Generative AI opt-out controlKeeps your site out of AI Overviews and AI ModeAnnounced for France; Google says not a ranking signal outside AI features
Search Console AI reportImpressions in AI Overviews and AI ModeYes: all websites since 31 August 2026
Sources: Google Search Central documentation and blog; Google Search Help; Google France blog.
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FAQ: Google's AI Mode and AI Overviews link update

What did Google announce for AI Mode and AI Overviews on 15 October 2026?

More inline links placed higher in AI answers, a test of a section at the top for the one or two official pages you need for a task, news carousels in more countries and languages, related-article links with thumbnails, and a test of clickable creator names on AI Mode video results.

Will the new inline links bring my website more traffic?

Possibly, if you're cited. Seer Interactive found brands cited in an AI Overview had about twice the click-through rate of brands that weren't cited. Google hasn't published click data, so nobody outside Google can measure the effect yet.

Can I see AI Mode and AI Overview clicks in Search Console?

No. The generative AI performance reports show impressions, pages, countries, devices and dates, but no clicks. Google says it may add more metrics over time but hasn't given a date.

How do I get my site into Google's "official page" section?

Google hasn't published criteria. The section is for tasks with only one or two official places on the web, so make sure your own pages for signup, pricing, documentation and support are public, indexable and clearly labelled.

Are AI Mode and AI Overviews available in Europe?

Yes, in most of Europe. AI Overviews reached nine European countries in March 2025, AI Mode expanded to more than 40 new countries in October 2025, and France got both in July 2026. Search profiles are still limited to Canada, India and the US.

How do I add my site to Google Preferred Sources?

Readers add sources themselves. You can make it easier with Google's "Add to preferred sources" button or a deeplink, both described in Google's Search Central documentation. Your site must be a domain or subdomain and must be included in Google's generative AI features to appear there in AI answers.

About the Author

Violetta Bonenkamp, also known as MeanCEO, is an experienced startup founder with an impressive educational background including an MBA and four other higher education degrees. She has over 20 years of work experience across multiple countries, including 5 years as a solopreneur and serial entrepreneur. Throughout her startup experience she has applied for multiple startup grants at the EU level, in the Netherlands and Malta, and her startups received quite a few of those. She’s been living, studying and working in many countries around the globe and her extensive multicultural experience has influenced her immensely.
2026-10-17 05:20 News and Trends