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TL;DR
Google said Oct. 28 that ads in AI Mode are expanding to 10 more countries and will appear in US follow-up questions. The move comes as Google Search ad revenue growth slowed to 12% in the third quarter, and raises questions about advertiser controls, website traffic and how clearly users can distinguish ads from answers.
Google said on October 28 it is expanding ads in its chat-style AI Mode to 10 more countries and adding ads to follow-up questions in the United States. The rollout extends advertising into more conversational search results as Alphabet reported 12% growth in Search & other revenue for the third quarter, slower than in the previous quarter.
The new AI Mode markets are Australia, Canada, India, Kenya, Malaysia, New Zealand, Nigeria, Pakistan, the Philippines and Singapore. Google said it plans to add Brazil, Mexico and the United Kingdom in the fourth quarter of 2026. In the US, ads can now appear not only in response to an initial AI Mode query but also in answers to follow-up questions.
Google’s advertising chief, Shashi Thakur, described the change as a way to place ads in “multiturn” searches. The company’s example is a person asking how to fix green pool water and receiving advice alongside an ad for a pool vacuum. Google says ads in AI answers will carry a “Sponsored” label and that advertising does not affect the AI-generated answer.
According to Google Ads Help, existing Search, Shopping and Performance Max campaigns may serve in these placements automatically. Advertisers do not get a separate targeting control or opt-out for the AI answer placements, and reporting is provided in aggregate. Google’s AI may also create short explanatory text beside an ad; advertisers cannot edit those explainers, according to the help material.
Infographic 01 · From test to global
The answer now carries the ad, in more places.
How Google moved ads into its AI answers in two years, where they show today, and the revenue pressure behind the move.
Where ads appear inside AI answers
Per Google’s help page and the 28 Oct post. The list “may not be exhaustive”.
Follow-up questions (“multiturn ads”): US only. Germany and the rest of the EU: not listed. Ads above or below AI Overviews can show wherever AI Overviews exist (200+ countries and territories).
Why now: Google Search & other revenue growth
Year over year, as reported by Alphabet. Bars scaled to 19%.
Q2 to Q3 2026: about +0.1%. Same months a year earlier: about +4.4% (my arithmetic). Google names exchange rates as the largest driver of the slowdown, and the “lower monetization” of AI Mode as one factor.
- 3 Oct 2024Ads inside AI Overviews go liveUS, mobile, after months of testing
- 21 May 2025Desktop in the US; first tests in AI ModeEnglish-speaking countries announced for later in 2025
- 20 May 2026New formats in testingConversational Discovery ads and Highlighted Answers, both with a Gemini-written “AI explainer”
- 28 Oct 2026AI Mode ads in 10 more countriesPlus “multiturn ads” in follow-up questions in the US; labeled “Sponsored”
- Q4 2026Planned: Brazil, Mexico, United Kingdom“Additional locales, including” these three
Sources: Google, 28 Oct 2026; Google Ads Help, accessed 29 Oct 2026; Google, 3 Oct 2024; Google, 21 May 2025; Google, 20 May 2026; Alphabet Q3 2026 release and the Q4 2025, Q1 2026 and Q2 2026 releases. “3× longer” is Google’s AI Mode report (US, May 2026). Quarter-on-quarter changes and bar scaling: Thorsten Meyer.
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Ads Enter More AI Search Journeys
The expansion puts advertising into a search format built around a sequence of questions and answers, rather than a list of links. For users, that can make the boundary between an AI response and a paid placement more important to spot. Google says the “Sponsored” label will identify ads, but readers still need to distinguish the paid result from the answer around it.
For advertisers, the change offers access to more AI search activity, but with limited placement-level control. Campaigns can participate automatically, while reporting is aggregated. That may make it harder for advertisers to isolate the performance of these placements or tailor campaigns specifically to them. Google says AI Mode searches are, on average, three times longer than conventional searches, but that is the company’s description of query length, not independent evidence of ad effectiveness.
Publishers also have a stake because AI answers can satisfy a question without sending a user to a website. A 2026 working paper by Agarwal and Sen, based on a randomized experiment with 1,065 US users, reported that AI Overviews reduced clicks to websites by 39.8% when they appeared. The researchers found no measurable change in ad clicks in that experiment. That result concerns the study’s participants and setup; it does not establish what will happen across all searches or in the newly expanded AI Mode markets.
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From AI Overviews to AI Mode
Google’s AI search advertising has expanded in stages. Ads in AI Overviews—AI summaries shown within ordinary search results—went live for US mobile users in October 2024. Google added desktop placements in May 2025 and began testing ads in AI Mode, a separate conversational search product where users can ask longer questions and follow up.
At Google Marketing Live in May 2026, the company also began testing ad formats including Conversational Discovery ads, which use Gemini to tailor ad text to a question, and “Highlighted Answers,” where an ad can appear in a list of AI recommendations. The October announcement extends the geographic reach of AI Mode ads and adds paid placements to later turns in a US conversation.
The rollout comes as Search remains a major source of Alphabet revenue. The company reported $63.4 billion in Search & other revenue for July through September 2026, about half of its total revenue. Growth was 12%, following 17% in the prior quarter. On Alphabet’s earnings call, Chief Business Officer Philipp Schindler cited currency effects as the largest factor behind the growth rate and also referred to lower monetization of AI Mode searches.
““to allow ads in follow-up queries in AI Mode””
— Shashi Thakur, Google’s search advertising chief, as quoted in Google’s October 28 announcement
Controls, Labels and Traffic Effects
It is not yet clear how much revenue Google will earn from the new placements, how often ads will appear in AI Mode answers, or whether the rollout will change click patterns for websites. Google’s claim that ads do not influence its AI answers is not independently verified in the source material, and no audit is cited.
The available click study addresses AI Overviews, not the new AI Mode placements, and its findings should not be treated as a forecast for every user or market. Google’s comparison of ad and organic product-list click-through rates is based on its internal US data from August 20 to September 3, 2026; it compares sponsored and unpaid product listings inside AI Mode, not clicks to websites.
Google’s help page lists 12 countries for ads in AI answers, in English. As of October 29, Germany and other European Union countries were not listed. The supplied information does not establish when, or under what rules, ads might reach those markets.
Rollout and Revenue Trends to Watch
Google has said Brazil, Mexico and the United Kingdom are planned for the fourth quarter of 2026. The company has not provided a more specific schedule in the material available. Advertisers and publishers will be watching for further market launches and for reporting that clarifies how ads perform within conversational results.
The next financial checkpoint will show whether Search revenue growth changes as AI Mode usage expands. Alphabet has reported that Search query growth is strong, while Schindler said AI Mode searches currently generate less monetization. Future results may help clarify whether new ad placements narrow that gap, but the announcement alone does not show how much revenue they will add.
For users, the immediate practical signal is Google’s “Sponsored” label on paid placements. For advertisers, the published campaign guidance indicates automatic participation in eligible campaigns, without a separate opt-out for these placements. Whether Google changes those controls or provides more detailed reporting remains unknown.
Key Questions
Where is Google expanding ads in AI Mode?
Google named 10 new markets: Australia, Canada, India, Kenya, Malaysia, New Zealand, Nigeria, Pakistan, the Philippines and Singapore. It said Brazil, Mexico and the United Kingdom are planned for the fourth quarter of 2026.
What are multiturn ads?
They are ads that can appear in responses to follow-up questions during an AI Mode conversation, not just in the answer to a user’s first query. Google announced this addition for the United States.
Can advertisers opt out of AI answer placements?
Google Ads Help says eligible Search, Shopping and Performance Max campaigns can participate automatically and that there is no separate opt-out or targeting control for these placements. Reporting is provided in aggregate, according to the help material.
How will users know an AI answer contains an ad?
Google says ads in AI answers will be marked “Sponsored.” Its separate claim that ads do not influence the AI’s answer has not been independently audited in the supplied source material.
Does research show AI search ads reduce website clicks?
A 2026 working paper by Agarwal and Sen reported that AI Overviews reduced website clicks by 39.8% in a randomized experiment with 1,065 US users, with no measurable change in ad clicks. The experiment studied AI Overviews, not the newly expanded AI Mode ads, so it does not settle their effects.
Source: ThorstenMeyerAI.com
