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Google's AI search is getting more ads – and German advertisers can't yet book the new AI Mode ad placement in a targeted way. On 28 October 2026, Google announced the expansion of ads in AI Mode to ten further markets and so-called multiturn ads in the USA. At the same time, Alphabet reported slower growth in its classic search business. For media teams, what matters is how ad delivery, control and measurement actually change in AI search.
The numbers: more search queries, but slower revenue growth
According to Alphabet's quarterly report from 28 October, Google Search & other generated 63,35 billion US dollars in revenue in the third quarter, an increase of 12 percent year on year. In the second quarter, growth was still 17 percent. Total Google advertising revenue came to 82,01 billion dollars, while group revenue grew by 25 percent to 127,58 billion dollars, driven by the strong cloud business.
Google also reports the highest annual increase in search queries in five years, without disclosing the specific growth rate. On the earnings call, management confirmed that queries in AI Mode are currently monetized at a lower rate. Other factors it cited include currency effects and a normalization of media and entertainment demand after an exceptionally strong previous quarter.
This does not mean that search query volume is falling or that AI search is causing all advertising revenue problems. The real challenge is generating a similarly sustainable return per use from new search situations.
What Google actually switched on on 28 October
The official Google announcement names Australia, Canada, India, Kenya, Malaysia, New Zealand, Nigeria, Pakistan, the Philippines and Singapore as the new markets for the expansion. Brazil, Mexico and the United Kingdom are planned for later in the fourth quarter. Germany is not on the new list. According to Google Ads Help, ads within AI Overviews and AI Mode are currently delivered in English and in selected countries. This is not the same as classic search ads above or below an AI overview, which are more widely available.
New in the USA are also multiturn ads: sponsored offers can appear not only for the first search query, but also for a later follow-up question within the same AI conversation. According to Google, AI Mode queries are on average three times as long as ordinary search queries. The search engine can also match ads based on the AI response and the conversational context.
For advertisers, the measurement gap matters more than the new interface
According to Google's help documentation, existing Search, Shopping and Performance Max campaigns automatically qualify for AI ad environments if targeting fits; a separate AI Mode budget is not required. Booking AI Mode exclusively or excluding it in isolation is currently not possible. Metrics for impressions, clicks, costs and conversions flow in aggregated form into standard campaign reports. A clean, isolated performance comparison of "classic search versus AI Mode" therefore cannot simply be read from them.
Google claims that click-through rates for sponsored and organic product listing entries within AI Mode are already similar. The basis is internal US data from August and September 2026. This statement is no proof of identical conversion rates, incremental revenue or the same performance as classic search ads. For German companies with US or other English-speaking target markets, conversion values, basket quality and regional campaign comparisons are therefore more relevant than isolated CTR promises.
Creative control is also changing: Google can generate so-called AI Explainers alongside ads that provide context for the product recommendation. According to the help documentation, advertisers may not write, approve or separately disable these texts themselves. Landing pages, product data and brand consistency thereby become a measurable quality question.
What German marketing and commerce teams should check now
If you only advertise in Germany in German, you should not draw the conclusion from this report that AI Mode ads are being introduced in Germany. If you advertise internationally, check the country and language approvals separately from your other search ads, keep your Merchant Center data up to date, and evaluate the impact based on actual business results. Our analysis on media budgets shifting due to AI Search explains why earlier research phases carry more weight. How merchants prepare their data for AI surfaces is covered in the report on Merchant Center and AI visibility.
The topic goes beyond Google: AI shopping at Google, ChatGPT and Amazon follows different recommendation and purchase models. And the expansion of ChatGPT advertising shows that the competition for ad-funded AI answers is already forming its own platform economy. Whether this shift actually brings advertisers additional buyers must be shown by reliable campaign tests.
Sources: Alphabet Q3 2026 / SEC, 28 October, Google Ads & Commerce, 28 October, Google Ads Help: Ads in AI results, earnings call transcript, 28 October as well as Reuters on revenue development, 28 October.