Google announced five changes to how links appear in AI Mode and AI Overviews. Hema Budaraju, VP of Product Management, explained the updates in a blog post. Google will more often place links in the answer text higher up, and is also beginning to test a format that puts links to official sites at the top of answers for certain task-related searches. Carousels of current news articles are expanding to more regions and languages, while a feature that lets users go from a video result to a creator’s Search profile by clicking the creator’s name is being tested.
The sources behind AI answers move closer to the top of the screen
Search that answers questions in prose with AI is convenient. But many people have probably read an answer and wondered, “Where did this come from?” Google’s latest update seems designed to address that question through changes to the interface.
Google says it has continued to make inline links—that is, links placed right alongside the answer text—more prominent in its AI experiences. This time, links will appear higher up than before in more cases. It builds further on the direction previewed in a May update: showing links next to relevant text.
Google did not provide specific figures, such as the percentage increase in link displays. The visual changes are clear, but the announcement does not say how extensive they are.
Changes to the end of answers, too
In some answers, links at the end will include image thumbnails, using a design Google describes as “more clickable.” In May, Google announced that it would show links at the end of answers to articles covering other aspects of the topic. This update refines how those links are presented.
The idea is to let users finish reading an answer and then move on to another article through a card with a thumbnail.
For searches with few official sources, links to official sites come first
Another key development is a test for task-related searches. These include queries about procedures or settings where there may be only one or two reliable official sources. In those cases, Google says it will place links to official sites at the very top of the answer, along with an explanation of why each link may be useful.
In many situations, it is more reliable to go straight to the official page than to read an AI-generated summary. It is an interesting move toward making AI less of an “answer provider” and more of a guide to the right place. However, this display is still in testing, and Google has not said when it will roll out more broadly.
More paths to articles and creators
Carousels of current news articles—lists of articles users can browse by swiping horizontally—are beginning to expand to more regions and languages. Articles from Preferred Sources, sites users have selected as ones they “want to see more of” in search, will be featured more prominently. Google says the number of Preferred Sources users has grown to more than seven times its level at the beginning of the year, but it has not disclosed the actual figure.
The announcement also did not specify which regions and languages are covered. A practical response may be to check AI search results in the countries and languages relevant to your site.
From video results to creators’ profiles
A new test for video results in AI Mode began this week. Clicking a creator’s or publisher’s name takes users to that person’s Search profile. Introduced in June, Search profiles are pages that bring a creator’s content—such as articles, videos and social media posts—together in one place.
According to the help page, creators can create profiles in the United States, Canada and India if they have at least 10,000 followers on YouTube, Instagram, X or TikTok. The Google Account holder must be at least 18 years old. For now, the pathway from AI Mode remains limited to the test.
Better visibility and more traffic are two different things
If links appear higher up in an answer, clicks should increase—or so one might hope. But it is not that simple. Search Console assigns every link in a single AI Overview the same position: one position for the Overview as a whole. That means a link can move higher within an answer without changing its reported position.
To qualify as a Preferred Source, a site must be included in Search’s generative AI features in Search Console. This requirement applies to both AI Mode and AI Overviews. Google also provides a button and a deep link that readers can use to add a site.
Of the changes announced, the carousel expansion is already underway. The display of official-site links at the top of answers and the pathway to profiles are still being tested. As AI search evolves, it will be important to distinguish changes in how things look on screen from changes in a site’s ranking or traffic.
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