Google's AI answers: more links, placed higher, and still no click numbers

Google announced the changes on October 15, 2026. That is the date on Search Engine Roundtable's report and on a post on X from Nick Fox that summarised them. According to Search Engine Journal, Hema Budaraju, VP of Product Management, described five updates in a blog post on how links appear in AI Mode and AI Overviews. Why should a clinic or a contractor care? When Google answers a question with its own AI text, the only route from that answer to your website is a link. Google has just changed where those links sit and how they look.

Google says its AI answers now carry more links, placed higher

The core change is about inline links, the links that sit next to the sentence they support. Search Engine Journal reported that Google says it has "made continued and substantial increases to the presence of inline links" in its AI experiences. Those links are now placed higher in the response in more cases than before. Google did not say how big the increase is, so there is no number to measure your own traffic against.

The links at the bottom of some AI responses are changing too. Search Engine Journal says they are getting image thumbnails and a design Google describes as more clickable. In his post on X, Nick Fox called this the "Dive Deeper section." Barry Schwartz, Executive Editor of Search Engine Roundtable, summed it up as "more prominent link designs for related articles." In May, Google said it would start showing suggestions at the end of many AI responses that link to articles on other parts of a topic, Search Engine Journal noted. This update makes those links bigger and more visual.

A test puts one or two official links at the very top

The second change is still a test. Search Engine Journal reports that Google will test a section at the top of certain responses. It covers task-based searches where there are only one or two official sources of information. In those cases the official links would appear at the very beginning of the answer, with a note from Google on why each link is a good resource. Nick Fox described it as a section that "prominently highlights the 1-2 links you need to complete a specific task or find exact info." Barry Schwartz put it as Google showing one or two links to the "right web page" for queries that deserve it.

This sounds promising for any business that is the official source for something, but read it carefully. Google has not said which searches count as tasks, what makes a site official, or when the test might expand. Search Engine Journal says the post gives no timing for this section. Nothing in the sources suggests that a search for a dental cleaning or a plumber falls into this group. Treat it as something to watch, not something to plan around.

Preferred Sources carousels spread, and your site can ask to be chosen

Preferred Sources is a Google feature that lets people pick websites they want to see more of when they search. Search Engine Journal reported that Google is starting to roll out its carousels for timely articles to more locations and languages. These carousels highlight a user's Preferred Sources. The post does not name the new locations or languages. Nick Fox's post describes "News carousels available globally for timely topics." Google also said the number of people using Preferred Sources has grown more than seven times since the beginning of the year. Search Engine Journal notes that no user count was given and no explanation of how it was measured.

Here is the part a business can act on. Google's documentation for site owners says that when someone chooses your site as a preferred source, your content can carry a "preferred" badge in AI Mode and AI Overviews for that person. To be eligible in AI Mode and AI Overviews, your site must be included in Search generative AI features in Search Console, according to Google's documentation. Only whole domains and subdomains qualify. A blog that lives in a folder of your main site cannot be added on its own. If your site appears in Google's source preferences tool, Google offers two ways to ask readers to add you. One is a button you add to your pages with two lines of HTML. The other is a plain link you can put in an email newsletter, a social post or a promotion.

Be honest about the fit. The carousels are for timely topics. A store that posts weekly product news, or a practice that comments on changing rules, has more to gain than a trades company whose site rarely changes. For anyone with a loyal customer list, though, the link is a small thing to ask for.

Search profiles get a new door from AI Mode videos

This week Google began testing a new link in AI Mode video results, Search Engine Journal reported. People can click the name of a creator or publisher and land on that creator's or publisher's Search profile. Search profiles launched in June. In Google's June 4, 2026 blog post, Ibrahim Badr, Product Manager, Search, wrote that profiles give publishers and creators "a central place to showcase their latest articles, videos and social posts."

For Canadian readers this one is within reach, with conditions. Google's help page lists Canada, India and the United States as available countries. It requires at least 10,000 followers or subscribers on YouTube, Instagram, X or TikTok, and you must be at least 18. The same page says creating a profile "doesn't directly affect your content's ranking on Google Search." Search Engine Journal checked the help page on the morning of October 15. At that point it did not list AI Mode as a place where people can find a profile. Barry Schwartz also pointed out that these name links go to Google pages first, meaning the Search profile page, not your website.

Your Search Console reports will not show you this change

Many owners, or the people they pay, check Google Search Console to see how the site is doing. This update will not show up cleanly there. Search Engine Journal explains that Search Console gives every link inside an AI Overview the single position of the overview itself. Moving an inline link higher in the response does not, by itself, change its reported position in Search Console. Google's own Search Console help page confirms the rule: each element in search results occupies a single position, whether it holds one link or many. Think of it like a shop window on a busy street. The report tells you where the window sits on the street, not which shelf inside the window holds your product.

Clicks are the bigger gap. Barry Schwartz asked Google for click data in its AI performance reports. Google told him: "We're continuing to work with website owners to understand what insights will be most helpful to inform their strategies, and we'll introduce additional metrics over time." There is a second wrinkle. Google's Search Console help says a click on a link that stays inside Google is not counted as a click. The new profile links in AI Mode go to a Google page first.

The other side: a lot here is unpublished. Google did not give the size of the link increase. It did not name the new carousel locations or languages, and it gave no Preferred Sources user count. It also gave no timeline for either test. Barry Schwartz wrote that "it feels as if those efforts to drive clicks from AI search continue to fail." That is his view, and his post does not include click figures either way. Nick Fox also said that more than 400 publications worldwide are part of Google's News AI pilot licensing program, in which Google pays for the delivery and use of enhanced content. That program is for news publishers. Nothing in the announcement describes a similar arrangement for ordinary business websites.

Bottom line

For most businesses this is a change you will see before you can measure it. More links, placed higher, should in principle give a well-made page more chances to be clicked from an AI answer. But Google has given no numbers, and Search Console will not separate the effect. The one concrete step today is to confirm your site is included in Search generative AI features in Search Console and to check whether it appears in Google's source preferences tool. After that, watch the official-links test and the carousel rollout in the language and region you serve.

When a customer asks Google about the thing you know best, is your page the one you would want it to link to?