Google to transform search with agentic AI in 2026
▼ Summary
– Google announced at I/O 2025 that “Google search is AI search,” marking a formal shift toward AI-powered search.
– AI Mode usage for search has doubled every quarter, with over 1 billion monthly users as of I/O 2026.
– AI Mode drives more searches by inviting conversational follow-up queries, which all count as searches.
– Google promotes AI Mode aggressively with prominent links and offers it for free to all users.
– Google is integrating AI Mode with AI Overviews, creating a seamless search experience across mobile and desktop.
Last year, Google made its pivot toward AI-powered search unmistakably clear, and this year’s I/O conference cemented that trajectory. As Liz Reid, Google’s search VP, declared on stage, “Google search is AI search.” That transformation is now in full swing, and while critics have raised reasonable concerns, they won’t slow the company down. The metrics that matter most to Google,user engagement, query volume, and retention,all point to this being the right strategy. And ultimately, Google’s sheer scale and influence mean it can shape the outcome it wants.
The company began testing AI Mode for search just over a year ago, making the shift official at I/O 2025. Complaints about how artificial intelligence is reshaping Google’s search products are common online, but the company is getting exactly what it aims for: more searches. Reid revealed at I/O 2026 that AI Mode usage has doubled every quarter, with more than 1 billion people now using it each month.
That growth is easy to understand. AI Mode invites a conversational search experience,it asks follow-up questions, and each of those interactions counts as a separate search. Google has aggressively promoted AI Mode, placing prominent links and nudges to steer users toward its search chatbot rather than the traditional interface. Unlike many of Google’s other AI offerings, AI search remains free for everyone using Google’s platform, making the full experience accessible to all.
AI Mode is becoming impossible to avoid, and at this year’s I/O, Google is unveiling even deeper integrations. AI Overviews may be the most visible element of Google’s AI search overhaul, but they increasingly look like a stepping stone as AI Mode gains momentum. Google is introducing a new seamless search experience that weaves AI Mode directly into AI Overviews. Already, most Google searches produce an AI Overview. The company is also expanding a mobile feature that lets users transition from an Overview into AI Mode, and that capability is now rolling out on desktop as well.
(Source: Ars Technica)
