AI Overviews: Growth to 48% But Organic Search Still Dominates 52%

The search landscape continues to evolve, and while traditional search isn’t disappearing, Google’s AI Overviews are rapidly gaining traction across a diverse range of industries. New data from BrightEdge reveals a 58% year-over-year increase in AI Overviews coverage, signaling a significant shift in how users are accessing information. However, classic search results still hold a slim majority, appearing in 52% of all queries, demonstrating a coexistence rather than a complete takeover.

AI Overviews Expansion: Sector by Sector

The growth of AI Overviews isn’t uniform. Certain sectors are experiencing a more dramatic expansion than others. Education has seen the most substantial increase, with AI search results triggered for 83% of queries in December 2025, compared to just 18% in May 2025. B2B technology queries have also surged, jumping from 36% to 82% over the same period. Restaurants are another standout, experiencing growth from 10% to 78% of queries triggering AI-powered results.

Healthcare, already a significant user of AI Overviews in 2024 (72% of queries), has seen further expansion to 88% by December 2025. This aligns with a January 2026 report from OpenAI highlighting that over 5% of all ChatGPT chats are health-related, and 25% of global weekly active users engage with health-related questions on the platform. The increasing reliance on AI for health information isn’t limited to patients; a Brookings Institution survey found that 53% of healthcare professionals are now utilizing AI tools.

Beyond these leading sectors, AI Overviews are also expanding in Insurance, Entertainment, Travel, eCommerce, Finance, and Restaurants – collectively representing the nine industries experiencing the most significant growth.

The Persistence of Traditional Search

Despite the impressive growth figures, traditional search results aren’t vanishing. The fact that classic search results still appear in over half of all queries suggests a continued need for the detailed, ranked listings that search engines have long provided. This is particularly true for high-value queries in sectors like B2B, where users may require more in-depth information than an AI-generated summary can offer. The dynamic suggests a complementary relationship, with AI Overviews handling queries best suited to conversational responses, while traditional search remains dominant for complex research and detailed comparisons.

How Google’s FastSearch Impacts AI Overview Results

A key factor influencing the composition of AI Overviews is Google’s FastSearch algorithm. This system doesn’t simply replicate the top-ranking organic results; instead, it retrieves the top 3 organic results for multiple related queries and synthesizes information from those sources to create an AI-generated answer. This process means that ranking number one organically doesn’t guarantee inclusion in an AI Overview, and conversely, not ranking on the first page doesn’t necessarily exclude a page from being cited.

BrightEdge’s data confirms this, revealing that only about 17% of sources cited in AI Overviews also rank in the organic top 10. However, this percentage increases to a broader alignment when considering the top 100 results, indicating that AI Overviews draw from the wider organic ecosystem, even if they don’t always prioritize the highest-ranked pages. This decoupling of AI Overview citations from traditional rankings has significant implications for content strategy and SEO, suggesting that visibility in AI search requires a broader approach than simply optimizing for page one rankings.

The Visual Dominance of AI Overviews

When AI Overviews do appear, they significantly alter the search results page layout. The average AI Overview exceeds 1,200 pixels in height, often occupying more than the entire visible screen on a standard desktop viewport (roughly 900 pixels). This means the first organic result is often positioned “below the fold,” requiring users to scroll to view traditional listings. This visual dominance reinforces the shift towards conversational information discovery and conditions users to expect AI-generated summaries at the top of their search results.

Search as a Multifaceted Experience

The current state of search can be characterized as a division of modes. Some queries trigger AI-generated summaries, while others present only ranked links. This splitting of search is a continuation of a trend that began in the early 2000s with the introduction of features like Google Maps and product search. The classic “ten blue links” have become increasingly rare, a shift that became particularly apparent with the introduction of Featured Snippets in 2014, signaling Google’s prioritization of direct answers over traditional listings.

What’s Next for AI and Search?

BrightEdge’s report indicates continued expansion of AI Overviews, with a 58% year-over-year increase and coverage now approaching half of all tracked queries. While overlap across the top 100 results has increased modestly, overlap within the top 10 remains relatively flat. A key question moving forward is understanding what types of queries continue to trigger classic search results. Are they primarily local or navigational queries? Further investigation into this area will be crucial for refining search strategies in this evolving landscape. The trend suggests a future where AI and organic search coexist, each serving distinct user needs and contributing to a more multifaceted search experience.