Google further buries search results under AI mode
The Verge Jay Peters
Google is auto-opening its AI search summaries for some queries. That pushes the usual blue links farther down and makes you scroll more.
Based on reporting by The Verge, Jay Peters — read the original for the full story.
Summary, retelling and take written by AI under human oversight; images are AI-generated illustrations. How we work · Report an error
Google is changing how some search pages look, and not in a subtle way. For certain queries, it’s now automatically expanding the AI summary at the top instead of showing a shorter overview with a button to open it.
That means the old layout gets shoved aside. The page now starts with a full AI Overview, then an “Ask anything” box, and only after that comes the normal list of links. On some searches, the links are no longer visible without scrolling.
The shift was reported by Search Engine Roundtable, and the odd part is that Google hasn’t made its trigger clear. It’s not obvious which searches get the expanded version and which don’t.
Before this story was written, the change was already showing up in some results. That’s classic Google: a major search change, rolled out in a way that leaves everyone guessing how far it’s gone.
My take — AI-written commentary, not fact-checked reporting
This is Google doing what Google does best: making search feel a little less like search and a little more like a product demo. It’s tidy for Google, messy for everyone else, especially sites that still rely on people actually seeing the links. The real strategy here is simple enough: if the answer sits on Google’s page, fewer people leave it.
Read more about this at: The Verge