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Search becomes a conversation, in every language.
At Google I/O, Google AI Mode got Gemini 3.5 Flash as its default model, a new Search box that grows with long questions, and the option to ask a follow-up straight from an AI Overview. Google said AI Mode passed one billion monthly users a year after launch, with queries doubling every quarter.
AI Mode runs across much of Europe, in local languages. Not everything from I/O crosses the Atlantic: booking and calling through an AI agent starts in the United States. Since then a heavier model has arrived for paying subscribers. What that means for your site is below.
What Google announced at I/O, and what applies in Europe
| Announced | What it does | In Europe |
|---|---|---|
| Gemini 3.5 Flash as default | The model behind every AI Mode answer | Yes, wherever AI Mode runs |
| New AI Search box | Expands with your question, suggests phrasing, takes text, images, files, video or Chrome tabs | Yes, rolling out in every country and language with AI Mode |
| Follow-ups from AI Overviews | From the AI block at the top into a conversation, with your context kept | Yes, worldwide on desktop and mobile |
| Information agents | Watch a question in the background and report when something changes | First for Google AI Pro and Ultra subscribers |
| Booking and calling through agents | Finds a reservation or calls a business for you | No, the US first |
| Personal Intelligence | Answers that draw on your Gmail and Google Photos, if you allow it | Yes, in nearly 200 countries and 98 languages |
| Interactive visuals and mini apps | Charts, simulations and custom trackers inside the answer | Visuals in English only, mini apps in the US first |
Why the follow-up changes everything
Search used to mean three words and a click on a result. In AI Mode you ask a full question and follow up: "and what does that cost in Munich", "and with Saturday delivery". Google says AI Mode questions are nearly three times longer than classic searches. Behind the scenes AI Mode splits your question into sub-questions and searches each one, a technique Google calls query fan-out. Every sub-question is a chance to be named, or to watch a competitor appear. Pages that carry only a slogan fall out of that conversation. Pages with facts, prices and terms stay.
Gemini 4 Argon: a heavier model, for those who pay
On 13 October 2026 Gemini 4 Argon came to AI Mode, worldwide, for Google AI Pro and Ultra subscribers. You pick it yourself from the menu in the question bar; the Auto and Fast settings remain for most questions. Google says Argon handles nuanced, multi-step questions and back-and-forth conversations better. A daily limit applies. For anyone who wants to be found, the bar does not move: AI Mode grounds its answers in pages from the web, and a more thorough model only reads those pages more thoroughly. How the assistants themselves compare is in ChatGPT vs Gemini.
Service firm that sends quotes
Directly, act now
Buyers ask a full question and follow up on price, lead time and region.
Put a price range, lead time and service area in plain sentences on your service page.
Webshop
Directly, act now
Comparison questions move into AI Mode, where Google also tests new ad formats.
Real specifications, your own photos and a buying guide per category.
Publisher living on ads
Directly, act now
The answer is already there, so the click comes less often.
Read the AI report per folder and only opt out with numbers in hand.
B2B company with a long sales cycle
Clearly
Buyers dig deeper and let agents watch for changes.
Keep figures, prices and terms current, with the date on them.
Local business taking bookings
A little
Booking and calling through agents starts in the US, not in Europe yet.
A complete business profile with hours, prices and a booking link.
The rating follows from what Google announced and where it applies, not from a traffic measurement.
One search, before and in AI Mode
- The question
- Classic searchA few words: webshop development price
- AI ModeA full question with context: what does a webshop for 200 products with delivery across the EU cost
- The answer
- Classic searchTen links and ads
- AI ModeA written answer with sources, and room to follow up
- Who gets picked
- Classic searchThe page that ranks best for the words
- AI ModeThe pages that support each sub-question best
- What you measure
- Classic searchPositions and clicks
- AI ModeImpressions in the AI report, and the enquiries that follow
In AI Mode the winner is not the page with the most keywords, but the page that answers part of the question most clearly.
Ads in AI answers: above and below in Europe, not inside
Ads appear above and below AI Overviews in every country that has them. Inside an AI Overview they only run in English, in twelve countries, none of them in the EU. In AI Mode Google has been testing sponsored answers and recommendations since 20 May; it gave no date for Europe. If you advertise today, you do it in the normal results.
How you become the source
- Answer one question per page, with the answer in the first sentence. A page with a website cost calculator is easier to cite than one that says "custom, get in touch".
- Put facts with a date and a source on the page, not promises. Google asks for no special files or markup; the usual basics count, see SEO vs GEO.
- Let the crawlers in; check it with the AI crawler checker.
- Keep your business details the same everywhere: site, Google Business Profile, social media.
- For a webshop: a buying guide per category with real specifications, as in ecommerce SEO.
- Read how to get found in ChatGPT: what works there works in AI Mode too.
Since late August you measure this in the Search Console AI report. The choice to step out sits there too; why that rarely suits a business that sells is in AI Overviews opt out. Search your ten most important buyer questions in AI Mode yourself, in every language your buyers use, and repeat it after every major update, like the May 2026 core update.