Google Search Console now shows how your content performs inside AI Overviews and AI Mode, and it rolled out globally on August 31, 2026. If you have been optimizing for answer engines without a way to measure the payoff, this closes a real gap.
What the New AI Performance Reports Show
The new reporting surfaces impressions, pages, countries, devices, and dates for how your content appears in Google’s generative AI search features. That is a meaningful upgrade from guessing whether your pages show up in AI-generated answers. One thing it does not include yet is click data, so you can see visibility but not yet isolate AI-driven traffic on its own.
The New Opt-Out: Search Generative AI Control
Alongside the reporting, Google rolled out a toggle called Search Generative AI Control that lets site owners prevent their content from appearing in AI Overviews, AI Mode, and AI Overviews in Discover. Google has been explicit that sites which opt out will not receive traffic or impressions from those generative AI features, and that opting out will not function as a ranking signal for traditional search results. In other words, blocking AI usage should not hurt your regular search visibility.
What This Means for Your AEO Strategy
For most small and midsize businesses, the right move is not to opt out. It is to use the new reports to figure out which pages already earn AI visibility and double down on what is working there: clear structure, direct answers near the top of the page, and content that reads as genuinely useful rather than keyword-stuffed. If a page is getting real impressions in AI Mode but no matching organic traffic, that is now something you can actually see and act on instead of guessing at.
This builds on the AI Mode expansion into organic search results we covered back in September and the newer test letting Search ads appear inside AI Mode. Together, these updates make AI Mode visibility something you can plan around instead of a black box.
Frequently Asked Questions
What data is included in Search Console’s new AI performance reports?
The reports show impressions, pages, countries, devices, and date ranges for how your content appears in AI Overviews, AI Mode, and AI Overviews in Discover. Click data is not yet included.
Will opting out of AI features hurt my regular Google rankings?
No. Google has stated that using Search Generative AI Control to opt out does not function as a ranking signal for traditional search results.
Is this rolled out to every Search Console user?
Yes. As of August 31, 2026, both the AI performance reports and the opt-out control are available globally to all Search Console users after a months-long gradual rollout.
Want help turning AI visibility data into an actual content plan? Visuapex Creatives builds SEO and AEO strategies around what Google is actually showing you. Get a free consultation.
Source: Search Engine Land.