Agency teams can prepare client sites for Google’s new source links in AI Mode and AI Overviews. Google announced on October 15, 2026, that it had increased the number and placement of links, added dedicated official-source sections, expanded news carousels and tested creator profile links.
The update gives sites more opportunities to appear as a destination within an AI response. It also leaves agencies without the feature-level click figures they need to determine whether the new designs send visits to client websites.
What changed in Google’s AI search results?
Google described five changes to AI Mode and AI Overviews. The company said these updates make sources easier to find and give searchers more ways to continue from an AI-generated response.
- More inline links: Google said it had made continued and substantial increases in the presence of links embedded in words and phrases. It is also showing these links higher in responses more often.
- A top section for official websites: Google is testing a dedicated section for searches with only one or two official pages that can complete a task or provide exact information. Each link will include context explaining why it is useful.
- Expanded news carousels: Timely article carousels are reaching more locations and languages and will appear for a wider range of queries. They can highlight a searcher’s Preferred Sources.
- Redesigned related-article links: Google said it was making links at the end of some AI responses more engaging and prominent, with image thumbnails and a more clickable design.
- Clickable names in video results: Google is testing creator and publisher names in AI Mode video results. A click opens the person’s Search profile rather than going directly to the publisher’s website.
Google’s official announcement does not disclose the size of the inline-link increase. It also says the creator-profile test applies to eligible creators and publishers.
How should an agency review client visibility?
For an agency managing client websites, the practical review starts with the queries that produce AI responses for the business.
Check whether relevant pages can appear as sources
Google’s official-site section is limited to searches with one or two relevant official pages. Agency teams should review whether each client page directly performs a specific task or supplies exact information, since that is the situation described by Google.
Pages written around broad topics may be less likely to fit this format than pages that answer a narrow request. The source does not give an agency a technical setting for controlling placement, so the review should focus on the page, its subject and the information it provides.
Review related pages and images
Google’s Dive Deeper design uses image thumbnails for related articles. Agencies should check whether client pages have relevant images and whether each article offers a clear additional angle after a searcher receives the main answer.
The source also says inline links are appearing higher in AI responses more often. Agencies should review the wording around relevant passages without assuming that any particular page element controls visibility.
Account for Preferred Sources
Google said the number of people using Preferred Sources had grown by more than seven times since the start of 2026. The company did not publish the underlying user count or explain how it measured the increase.
Preferred Sources lets a searcher choose sites they want to see more often. The expanded news carousel can highlight those choices, which gives publishers another reason to produce timely coverage. Google said the carousel would reach more locations and languages and apply to a wider range of timely queries.
Separate publisher controls from result placement
Creator and publisher names in video results link to Search profiles, not directly to a publisher’s site. Agencies should distinguish that route from a direct link to the publisher’s website.
Google also said more than 400 publications participate in its News AI pilot licensing program. Under that program, Google pays for the delivery and use of enhanced content to develop new AI features.
What can agencies measure without AI click data?
Google’s AI performance reports in Search Console still do not provide clicks for AI Mode or AI Overviews. According to the Search Engine Land report, Google still does not provide click data broken down in the AI performance reports in Google Search Console for the new inline links, official-site section, carousels or related-article cards.
Google said it would keep working with website owners to identify useful insights and add metrics over time.
Agencies can document which client URLs appear in each relevant AI response, where they appear and when the placement changes. Those notes should not be presented as click data. SEOScanPRO can also run a comprehensive website SEO audit, including a local SEO audit and on-page analysis, and offers AI visibility tracking.
What to do now
- Build a query list for each client. Record the searches that produce AI Mode or AI Overviews results for the client’s products, services and current topics. Choose queries based on the service or business you manage.
- Check official-page fit. Review whether a client page answers one specific task or supplies exact information. Google is testing its official-site section for searches with only one or two suitable pages.
- Inspect related content. Look for client articles that add another angle to the main answer, along with relevant images for the redesigned related-article links.
- Record AI source placements. Note the date, query, visible URL, placement type and context. Treat the notes as a visibility record, not a traffic report, because Google has not added AI Mode and AI Overviews click data.
- Review reporting language. Tell clients what was observed and label traffic conclusions separately. Distinguish observed source appearances from evidence of referrals.
What agencies can tell clients now
Google said it was showing more inline links higher in responses, testing a dedicated section for one or two official pages, making related-article links more prominent with image thumbnails and expanding timely news carousels.
The limits are equally clear. Google has not released click figures for AI Mode or AI Overviews, and the creator-name test leads to a Search profile rather than a publisher website. Agencies can audit relevance, placement and technical readiness now, then report those observations without presenting them as measured referral traffic.
FAQ
What did Google change in AI Mode and AI Overviews on October 15, 2026?
Google increased the presence and placement of inline links, began testing a top section for one or two official-source links, expanded timely article carousels, redesigned related-article links with image thumbnails and started testing clickable creator and publisher names on video results.
Why are publishers still asking for AI search click data?
The AI performance reports in Search Console do not expose clicks from AI Mode or AI Overviews. According to the Search Engine Land report, Google does not provide click data broken down in the AI performance reports for the new link placements. Google said it will introduce additional metrics over time.
How much has Preferred Sources usage grown?
Google said the number of people using Preferred Sources had grown by more than seven times since the beginning of 2026. The company did not provide a user count or explain how it measured the increase.
Related coverage
- AI Mode vs. AI Overviews: Two Behaviors, One Google - NewSunSEO
- Google Just Made AI Overviews More Link-Friendly: What This Changes for SEO in 2026 - NewSunSEO
- How to Get Your Business Cited by ChatGPT, Perplexity, and Google AI Overviews - NewSunSEO
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