At Google Marketing Live last month, Google announced a new generation of ad formats built with Gemini. These formats rethink the relationship between a search query and an ad response. And early signs suggest the rollout is moving fast.
Here’s what’s coming, what’s already being tested, and what it means for your campaigns.
Ads in AI Mode
Google’s research has found that 75% of shoppers say AI Mode in Search helps them make faster, more confident purchasing decisions. That’s a signal that the intent behind searches is deepening, and the bar for what counts as a “helpful” ad is rising with it.
Google’s response is to build ads that participate in that conversation rather than interrupt it. Instead of relying on static creative and keyword matching alone, advertisers will increasingly need to think about conversational discovery, AI-generated explainers, and intent-rich interactions.
The New Ad Formats Coming to AI Mode
Conversational Discovery Ads
This is the one that changes things most fundamentally. Instead of matching a keyword to a static headline, Conversational Discovery Ads use Gemini to build creative in response to the specific phrasing of someone’s query in real time.
The example Google gives is to imagine someone is searching: “I want my house to smell like a luxury spa or a rainy forest — what are some low-maintenance options?” Rather than a generic fragrance ad, this new ad format generates a response that addresses that framing: the mood, the low-maintenance requirement, the sensory goal.
For brands, that means your ad isn’t competing on keywords alone. It’s competing on relevance to a very human, specific moment. These are currently being tested in the U.S. on both mobile and desktop.
Highlighted Answers
When AI Mode generates a recommendation list, again the example used by Google is, the best language learning apps – eligible ads can now appear directly on that list as a Highlighted Answer. If your product is genuinely among the best for what someone’s asking, it earns a place in the answer itself.
Both Conversational Discovery Ads and Highlighted Answers include an independent AI explainer – a Gemini-generated context note about the product or service – displayed alongside the creative. It’s designed to add transparency and build trust. Ads will also still be clearly labelled as “Sponsored.”
What’s Coming to Search
AI-Powered Shopping Ads
For considered purchases, Google is launching AI-powered Shopping ads that go further than product images and prices.
When someone searches for, say, an espresso machine, Gemini surfaces your most relevant products and writes a custom explainer for why a given product might be the right fit for that specific search. The pitch adjusts to the query rather than the other way around. These are expected to roll out later this year in the U.S.
Business Agent for Leads
Static lead forms have long been one of the weakest links in the conversion chain. Business Agent for Leads replaces the form with a Gemini-powered chat interface embedded directly in the ad. A prospective student researching universities, for example, can tap “Chat” to get real answers drawn from your website. This is launching in open beta for U.S. advertisers.
For an example, see here: https://storage.googleapis.com/gweb-uniblog-publish-prod/original_videos/Business_Agent_for_Leads.mp4#t=0.001
Healthcare ads are already being tested in AI Mode
Google has already confirmed it is running a live test of healthcare ads in AI Mode.
The test is currently limited to U.S. advertisers running English-language queries, and Google Ads Liaison, Ginny Marvin, confirmed that eligible campaign types include Performance Max, AI Max with search term matching, Shopping campaigns, and broad match campaigns – the same types eligible to serve in AI Mode (and AI Overviews). The first phase comes with some creative restrictions, specifically excluding ads with pinned assets or text disclaimers.
Healthcare is one of Google’s most regulated advertising categories, which makes this test significant. If Google is willing to bring ads into AI Mode for healthcare, the broader rollout to other categories is likely a matter of when, not if. Advertisers in finance, legal, and other sensitive sectors should be paying close attention.
What You Should Do Now
If you think any of these features could benefit your business and you want access to these new formats, you need to be set up with Performance Max, AI Max for Search, and AI Max for Shopping campaigns.
Beyond campaign structure, it’s worth rethinking how you approach creative. These formats reward specificity and context – advertisers whose assets and product data are clean, detailed, and well-structured will give Gemini more to work with when generating tailored responses.
As always, these updates sound amazing and if they work exactly like Google is promising for every advertiser, big or small, then fantastic. However, sometimes the reality is a different story and it will likely take a lot of testing for them to get it right. I personally don’t think AI Max is ready yet, but maybe when ads are appearing consistently in AI Mode and AI Overviews, the results will improve. We’ll just have to wait and see.
For the highlights of Google Marketing Live 2026 watch this: