Google is now automatically expanding its AI Overview summaries at the top of search results for certain queries, a change that pushes the traditional list of links significantly further down the page. The update affects users who perform searches on the platform, as they may now see a full AI-generated response instead of a partial one with a clickable button to reveal more. This behavior was first reported by Search Engine Roundtable, and it represents a shift in how the company presents information to its American user base.
When the auto-expansion activates, the results page displays the complete AI Overview at the very top, followed by an "Ask anything" prompt box, and only then the list of web links. This layout requires users to scroll considerably more to reach organic search results, which are typically the primary goal for many people conducting searches. The change appears to be inconsistent, as some test queries triggered the expanded view while others did not, and the same query sometimes produced different layouts across different browsers.
Google has not publicly detailed the exact criteria used to determine which queries get the auto-expanding treatment. A company spokesperson, Jennifer Kutz, told The Verge that for some topics, the AI Overviews may dynamically expand when Google's systems decide it is most useful for the user. She added that research suggests this dynamic experience makes Search more helpful and encourages deeper follow-up exploration. Kutz also noted that if a user has already started scrolling to view content below the AI Overview, the expansion is canceled to avoid disrupting their reading position.
Prior to the story being written, most test searches showed the expanded AI Overview, but afterward, the views typically reverted to the shorter version with a "Show more" button. The most reliable query for reproducing the auto-expansion was "what is the best game on switch 2," though even that was not consistent across different search sessions or browsers. This variability indicates the feature is not yet uniformly applied across all users or regions.
The move is part of a broader trend at the company to integrate AI more deeply into its core search product, which has raised concerns among publishers and website owners who rely on traffic from search links. By pushing organic results further down, the auto-expanded Overviews could reduce click-through rates to external sites, a topic of ongoing debate in the tech industry. For now, the feature appears to be rolling out incrementally, with no official timeline for broader implementation or a toggle for users to disable it.
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