New data from Google’s Q2 2025 earnings call suggests that AI features in Search are driving higher engagement.
Google reported that AI Overviews contribute to more than 10% additional queries for the types of searches where they appear.
With AI Overviews now reaching 2 billion monthly users, this is a notable shift from the early speculation that AI would reduce the need to search.
AI Features Linked to Higher Query Volume
Google reported $54.2 billion in Search revenue for Q2, marking a 12% increase year-over-year.
CEO Sundar Pichai noted that both overall and commercial query volumes are up compared to the same period last year.
Pichai said during the earnings call:
“We are also seeing that our AI features cause users to search more as they learn that Search can meet more of their needs. That’s especially true for younger users.”
He added:
“We see AI powering an expansion in how people are searching for and accessing information, unlocking completely new kinds of questions you can ask Google.”
This is the first quarter where Google has quantified how AI Overviews impact behavior, rather than just reporting usage growth.
More Visual, Conversational Search Activity
Google highlighted continued growth in visual and multi-modal search, especially among younger demographics. The company pointed to increased use of Lens and Circle to Search, often in combination with AI Overviews.
AI Mode, Google’s conversational interface, now has over 100 million monthly active users across the U.S. and India. The company plans to expand its capabilities with features like Deep Search and personalized results.
Language Model Activity Is Accelerating
In a stat that received little attention, Google disclosed it now processes more than 980 trillion tokens per month across its products. That figure has doubled since May.
Pichai stated:
“At I/O in May, we announced that we processed 480 trillion monthly tokens across our surfaces. Since then we have doubled that number.”
The rise in token volume shows how quickly AI is being used across Google products like Search, Workspace, and Cloud.
Enterprise AI Spending Continues to Climb
Google Cloud posted $13.6 billion in revenue for the quarter, up 32% year-over-year.
Adoption of AI tools is a major driver:
- Over 85,000 enterprises are now building with Gemini
- Deal volume is increasing, with as many billion-dollar contracts signed in the first half of 2025 as in all of last year
- Gemini usage has grown 35 times compared to a year ago
To support growth across AI and Cloud, Alphabet raised its projected capital expenditures for 2025 to $85 billion.
What You Should Know as a Search Marketer
Google’s data challenges the idea that AI-generated answers are replacing search. Instead, features like AI Overviews appear to prompt follow-up queries and enable new types of searches.
Here are a few areas to watch:
- Complex queries may become more common as users gain confidence in AI
- Multi-modal search is growing, especially on mobile
- Visibility in AI Overviews is increasingly important for content strategies
- Traditional keyword targeting may need to adapt to conversational phrasing
Looking Ahead
With Google now attributing a 10% increase in queries to AI Overviews, the way people interact with search is shifting.
For marketers, that shift isn’t theoretical, it’s already in progress. Search behavior is leaning toward more complex, visual, and conversational inputs. If your strategy still assumes a static SERP, it may already be out of date.
Keep an eye on how these AI experiences roll out beyond the U.S., and watch how query patterns change in the months ahead.
Featured Image: bluestork/shutterstock
