Brandlight Blog | Google’s AI Search Evolution and What It Means for Brands

Google Marketing Live 2025 laid out one of the clearest roadmaps yet for where search and advertising are headed in the AI era.

From AI Overviews to the newly launched AI Mode, Google is transforming the search experience—and brands need to respond quickly if they want to maintain relevance and visibility.

A recent Ad Age piece by tech journalist Asa Hiken breaks down the key takeaways, with insights from BrandLight’s CEO Imri Marcus, who was quoted throughout.

What’s Changing

1. AI Overviews Are Now Mainstream

Google shared that over 1.5 billion users interact with AI Overviews every month, signaling a fundamental change in how consumers discover information—and how brands get seen.

2. AI Mode Goes Full Funnel

AI Mode turns search into a chat-like conversation, giving Google the power to interpret user intent and surface relevant ads, even when there’s no obvious commercial query. This changes how advertisers think about keywords, audience targeting, and ad creative.

3. Answer Engine Optimization (AEO) Takes Center Stage

Imri Marcus explains that brands need to treat AEO like the new organic strategy—because users are getting answers, not just links.

“All brands will have to start optimizing for this new modality,” Marcus says.

“AEO is how brands get discovered in a world where AI summarizes the web,” he adds. “It’s about relevance, not just keywords—and being structured and cited in places LLMs trust.”

He also notes that knowing how AI surfaces content should inform brands’ paid strategies as well:

“Understanding what content gets cited organically can help brands decide what and where to promote with paid ads,” Marcus said.

4. Multimodal Content Will Drive Discovery

Google’s push toward multimodal models—like the video-generating Veo 3—means that optimization must go beyond web pages.

Marcus emphasizes that brands should structure and optimize video, podcasts, and imagery so that AI systems can understand and retrieve that content effectively.

“Brands may be shocked by some of the things that are affecting [their] visibility,” Marcus said.

Why This Matters

This isn’t just a Google update—it’s a full shift in how content is indexed, evaluated, and surfaced. From structured data to semantic clarity and multimodal reach, brands need to start thinking like AI systems if they want to remain discoverable.

Answer Engine Optimization (AEO) is no longer a theoretical concept. It’s a core competency.