Google has begun rolling out a new tool in the UK that will generate search results using artificial intelligence (AI), marking a significant shake-up to the world's most popular search engine. The feature, known as "AI Mode," started becoming available to users in the United Kingdom on July 28, 2025. Instead of a traditional list of links, users who choose AI Mode will be given an answer written in a conversational style.
This new search experience is described as Google's most powerful AI search experience to date, featuring advanced reasoning and multimodality. Users can submit queries using text, voice, or even images. Hema Budaraju, Vice President of Product Management for Search, said the move heralds a "major shift" in how people are using online searches. The system employs a custom version of Google's Gemini 2.5 model and a technique called "query fan-out," which breaks down complex questions into multiple subtopics to synthesize comprehensive responses from numerous web sources.
AI Mode appears as a dedicated tab on search results pages and within the Google mobile app for both Android and iOS. It is particularly helpful for exploratory questions, comparing products, or understanding complex topics. Early users of AI Mode are reportedly asking questions that are two to three times the length of traditional search queries.
The rollout follows the introduction of AI Overviews (formerly known as Search Generative Experience or SGE), which provide AI-generated summaries at the top of search results. AI Overviews launched publicly in the US in May 2024 and expanded to the UK and other countries including India, Japan, and Brazil. While AI Overviews appear for certain queries, AI Mode is a more immersive, opt-in experience.
The shift towards AI-generated answers has raised concerns among publishers and businesses that rely on search traffic. Some publishers have reported a decline in clicks since Google introduced its AI features. However, Google maintains that links included in AI answers drive higher-quality clicks, with users more likely to spend more time on the sites they visit. The company is continuing to refine its approach, with a focus on helping people access information from a diverse range of sources.