AI Overviews answer a query directly on the results page. A language model summarises content from the Google index and links to the supporting pages. According to Google Search Central, AI Overviews use query fan-out: the system runs several related searches on subtopics and collects relevant pages along the way.
Google announced the feature for Germany, Austria, Switzerland and six other European countries on 25 March 2025. At launch, signed-in users aged 18 and over saw it. Alongside it, Google offers AI Mode, a separate conversational AI search.
There are no special rules for websites. A page must be indexed and eligible to show a snippet. Studies such as the one by the Pew Research Center measure fewer clicks on traditional results when an AI Overview appears. Our article on Google AI Overviews and AI Mode covers availability, studies and controls.