In 2023 and early 2024, SEO was all about scoring page-one rankings with backlinks, keywords, and structured data. But everything changed when Google launched its AI Overviews (formerly SGE).
These AI-generated summaries now appear at the top of search results and cover around 13% of all Google queries, doubling since January 2025.
Also, major publications are paying attention. The Verge and Android Central recently covered Google’s new Audio Overviews test, which reads out AI summaries aloud for mobile users. It means it’s even more important to make sure your answers are ready to go.
That’s a big deal.
Why?
Because most users are now getting what they need straight from that summary without ever visiting your website.
So, what do you do when people stop clicking?
The goal isn’t just to rank anymore. It’s about making your content easier for AI tools like Google, ChatGPT, or Perplexity to understand and quote directly. That’s why SEO needs to evolve into Generative Engine Optimization (GEO)—optimizing your content so it’s precise, structured, and AI-ready.
In this post, we’ll talk about AI overviews, how they impact SEO, and how you can start making your content visible in this AI-first search world.
Let’s dive in.
What Are AI Overviews?
AI Overviews are summaries generated by Google’s artificial intelligence that appear at the top of search results. They pull information from multiple credible sources across the internet to provide quick, direct answers to user queries.
These summaries can appear as short paragraphs, bullet points, tables, or formats. AI Overviews are most commonly triggered by informational, product-related, and planning queries. However, these are increasingly showing up for complex questions as well.
Also, each overview often includes links to the sources below the summary to see where Google picked it.
How Do AI Overviews Impact SEO?
AI Overviews affect SEO by changing how people interact with search results. Instead of clicking on multiple websites, users now get direct answers at the top of the page. This shift affects SEO in three key ways:
- Increasing zero-click searches: Many users get answers directly from the AI summary and never click on any links.
- Traffic shifts: Sites featured in the AI overviews achieve more impressions, while others may notice a drop in organic traffic.
- Authority is significant: Google prefers to pull answers from credible sources, especially for YMYL topics like health, finance, or legal advice.
Where it’s growing fastest:
The March 2025 core update saw a massive increase in AI Overviews in previously less-covered sectors:
Source: Industry Spikes in AIOs
- Entertainment queries up by 528%
- Restaurants saw a 387% jump
- Travel searches rose 381%
So what does this mean for your website?
If you’re not actively optimizing for these AI summaries, you’re probably losing visibility, even if you still rank on page one. So, track your keywords for AI Overview positioning.
How to Optimize Your Content For Google AI Overview?
1. Create Clear and Useful Content
Your content should answer questions clearly and directly to show up in Google’s AI Overviews. Start by giving a simple, factual answer at the top of the page or section.
Avoid long intros or unnecessary details. Focus on what users want to know and explain it in a way that’s easy to understand.
Example:
If your page is about “best time to drink water,” open with a direct line like:
“The best time to drink water is right after waking up and before meals to help digestion and hydration.”
Keep your content unique, helpful, and focused on real questions people are asking. Don’t delay it with background stories or fluff.
2. Include Answer-Based Sections
AI overviews focus on providing quick, direct information. So, write the content answering specific user queries and improve the chances of being quoted.
Use questions as subheadings just like this section. Break down your content into bite-sized answers that match what people are asking.
3. Match Search Intent
SEO, earlier, was about targeting exact-match keywords. Today, it’s about understanding what users are trying to do when they search.
For example, someone searches for “best time to water plants.” The user will want a direct answer and not a 500-word-long story.
So, match your content to what users want. You can break your content into several formats, like:
- Quick facts
- How-to searches
- Comparisons
- Short summaries
- Listicles
Remember, matching intent equals more relevance to the AI overview and ultimately increases chances of getting featured.
4. Format Your Content Properly
AI can scan structured content and identify exact snippets to use in summaries. So, format your content accordingly.
- Use short paragraphs and bullet points
- Add headings every few sections
- Add tables for comparisons
- Use Bold or Italics to highlight answers
5. Use Natural, Human Language
When writing content, use natural language. Keep it clear and easily digestible to achieve a good readability score. You should avoid:
- Fancy words or jargon that are hard to understand
- Overly complex topics or terms
- Keyword stuffing that tricks search engines
Following all these tips will help Google understand the content relevance and context and pull it to AI overviews.
6. Perform On-Page Optimization
There’s a possibility that great content can get ignored if the page structure isn’t clear. On-page SEO helps AI understand your content better.
- Use clear H1–H3 headings to organize topics
- Add meta titles, meta descriptions, and alt text
- Include internal links to related content
- Keep paragraphs short and scannable
You can use tools like SurferSEO or Frase to check your content structure, keyword placement, and readability score. It will help in better page optimization and increase the chances of AI citation.
7. Cite Credible Sources
Linking your content to trusted sources is essential. It helps to showcase that your data is supported by Google’s reputable resources. As a result, the chances of content appearing in an AI overview increase. Also, it builds user trust.
8. Improve the User Experience
Google notices when users bounce back quickly. Hence, keep your content mobile-friendly and quick-loading. Add helpful visuals like charts or graphs with alt text, as AI can’t see but can read descriptions. Also, ensure the UI/UX is clean and easy to navigate for users.