Google experiments with ads inside AI-driven Search and Gemini interfaces

New Delhi: Google has begun testing advertisements within its AI-powered Search mode and Gemini-based experiences, marking a potential shift in how advertising could operate within conversational and multimodal environments.

Robby Stein, Vice President of Product for Google Search, confirmed the development during a conversation on the Silicon Valley Girl YouTube podcast, stating that the company has “started some experiments on ads within AI mode and within Google AI experiences.”

When asked whether traditional Google Ads could disappear as AI-led search becomes central, Stein said he does not “see them going away.” He noted that users continue to rely on Google for a variety of everyday needs fro,m getting insurance quotes to finding local businesses, though the way they interact with search is evolving.

“Now you can do all these new things,” he said, referencing use cases such as taking a photo of shoes to find similar designs or asking about restaurant options for large groups with specific dietary needs. According to Stein, these emerging multimodal and conversational behaviours present new possibilities for businesses, “particularly in an advertising context.”

He added that Google remains “really focused on building great consumer products first and foremost,” even as the company experiments with different ad integrations within its AI systems.

The move comes amid broader industry conversations around sustainable monetisation models for AI services. Both Google and OpenAI operate tiered systems, offering limited free access alongside paid plans with additional features. However, the high operational costs of maintaining these AI platforms have prompted exploration of advertising-based revenue models, especially for free tiers.

Unlike traditional web search, where ads are positioned alongside results, conversational AI presents fewer natural spaces for advertising. Integrating sponsored mentions or contextual links directly into AI-generated responses could allow companies to sustain revenue while adapting to more interactive, dialogue-driven formats.

For instance, if a user asks an AI about “best laptops for video editing,” a sponsored suggestion could appear within the response, similar to how ads currently blend with organic search listings.

Such integrations could make advertising more contextually relevant, as AI systems interpret user intent more precisely. However, they also raise questions around transparency, particularly about how sponsored content will be disclosed within AI-generated outputs.

At present, Google’s tests remain limited, with both the company and competitors like OpenAI reportedly exploring user reactions to ad placements within AI environments before expanding the model further.