Google expands AI Mode ads as Search growth slows

Google is expanding advertising in its AI Mode search feature to 10 countries outside the United States, while Alphabet’s latest results show slower growth in Search revenue and executives say AI Mode currently generates less revenue per query than traditional Search. The company announced Wednesday, October 28, that ads in AI Mode will be available in Australia, Canada, India, Kenya, Malaysia, New Zealand, Nigeria, Pakistan, the Philippines and Singapore. Google also plans to add Brazil, Mexico and the United Kingdom later in the quarter. In the United States, it is introducing ads that can appear in follow-up queries during multi-turn AI Mode searches. Google said the ads will carry a Sponsored label. Alphabet reported third-quarter Search and other revenue of $63.35 billion, up 12% from a year earlier. That growth rate was down from 17% in the second quarter. Alphabet’s total revenue rose 25% year over year to about $127.6 billion. On the company’s October 28 earnings call, Chief Business Officer Philipp Schindler said AI Mode queries were less monetizable than traditional Search queries. He also said foreign-exchange effects were the largest driver of the slowdown in...