Google is testing sponsored text link ads inside AI Mode answers

Search Engine Roundtable reports that Google has started testing a new text link ad format inside AI Mode, where the ads look like part of the AI answer and carry only a Sponsored label above them to separate them. The test was first spotted by Sachin Patel, who shared examples on X and on Search Engine Watch.

What the new format looks like

The sponsored results appear as text with anchor links, styled the same way as the rest of the AI Mode response. Barry Schwartz, who reported what was seen, notes the ads carry a "Sponsored" label positioned above the AI-generated response, rather than a distinct ad block below it. In his own queries, Schwartz saw both formats. Some results showed the new text link ads at the top; others showed traditional ad units placed below the AI response, the pattern Google has run in AI Mode until now.

Google has not published a statement about the test, and Search Engine Roundtable does not report how widely it is running or which queries trigger it. Patel's post shared one live example, and Schwartz confirmed he could reproduce a version of the format on his own account.

The click question

Schwartz states the concern in one line. "These AI Mode ads look way to organic, no? But I doubt they will have as high of a click-through rate than the normal format." That line makes two points. First, the ads look enough like the AI answer that a reader might not notice they are ads, which is the whole reason a Sponsored label sits above them. Second, users have already learned to ignore links inside AI Mode answers because on most queries the answer itself is what they came for. A link that looks like the answer body is affected by both patterns.

If the test rolls out, the effect on paid search creative is direct. Ad copy that reads as an assertion in the AI voice performs differently from ad copy that reads as a listing card, so the headline that performs best in a standard search ad may perform worse here, and the ad tests have to be run again. Matching the landing page to the ad matters more too: a reader clicking an AI Mode text link is in the middle of reading an answer, and the page they arrive on has to continue from the answer they were reading.

The bigger context is that Google has been visibly working out how to monetise AI Mode. Text link ads inside the answer, and the traditional block below it, are two different guesses about what a reader will click. The test suggests Google is testing both and measuring which one earns more per query without pushing users away from AI Mode.

Source

Google AI Mode Tests Text Link Ads, Search Engine Roundtable, 15 September 2026. Original sighting by Sachin Patel on X.