Google’s recent clarification about how AI Overviews are reported in Search Console has sparked renewed interest — and questions — among digital marketers and SEO professionals worldwide. The tech giant confirmed that links contained within AI Overviews and standard web results are counted as a single position in Search Console’s Performance report.
This means if your website is linked within an AI-generated overview that appears at the top of the search results, that link is considered to be in position one, and all other links in that same Overview are assigned the same position — regardless of order or prominence.
This revelation brings both clarity and complexity to the world of SEO, especially in how we interpret rankings, clicks, and impressions in a rapidly evolving SERP (Search Engine Results Page) landscape. For Australian businesses aiming to stay competitive online, it highlights the importance of refining strategies to align with emerging search features — and knowing exactly how their performance is measured.
What Are AI Overviews?
AI Overviews are part of Google’s push into generative AI integration within its search engine. Formerly known as Search Generative Experience (SGE), these overviews offer users a summarised answer to their queries at the top of the search page — often before traditional web links, ads, or featured snippets.
Rather than directing users straight to blue links, Google uses its language models to generate a snippet of cohesive information that pulls insights from various sources — including websites, products, reviews, and forums. Links within these summaries are still clickable, but the user experience is designed to keep people on the results page longer, potentially reducing organic click-throughs.
Why Google’s Clarification Matters
From a measurement and performance standpoint, many SEOs had been asking how these links were being counted. Were they treated as their own entity? Did being featured in an AI Overview offer additional exposure in Search Console?
Google has now stated that all links in AI Overviews are counted as one result in a single position, which is shared. In simpler terms: if a link to your website appears in the AI Overview, and that overview is shown in position 1 of search results, your website’s link will also be attributed to position 1 — even if it is not the first link in that overview.
This has a few implications:
- Your website may appear to rank higher than it actually does in the “traditional” web links section.
- Impressions and clicks attributed to AI Overviews could skew your performance data.
- You cannot distinguish whether traffic is coming from a regular snippet or an AI Overview — they’re grouped together.
What This Means for SEO Reporting
With this clarification, it’s more important than ever to be cautious when interpreting data from Search Console.
For instance, if your client’s page is suddenly showing a strong increase in impressions and average position, it could be due to inclusion in an AI Overview — not a traditional SERP boost. However, because Search Console doesn’t currently provide a breakdown of which impressions came from AI Overviews versus standard links, the data lacks granularity.
This makes qualitative insights and on-page behaviour tracking (like bounce rate, session duration, and conversion rate) even more essential. Your organic search numbers may look great, but without cross-referencing with user interaction data from Google Analytics or other tools, you won’t get the full picture.
Strategic Implications for Australian Businesses
Businesses looking to capitalise on AI-driven search features need to think beyond just rankings. Content needs to be:
- Authoritative and factually accurate
- Optimised for entities and topic clusters
- Clearly structured to help Google extract meaning
To increase the chance of appearing in AI Overviews, your content should answer specific questions concisely while also demonstrating E-E-A-T: Experience, Expertise, Authoritativeness, and Trustworthiness. This is especially important for YMYL (Your Money or Your Life) topics such as finance, health, or law — common categories among Australian service businesses.
Leveraging an SEO Strategy in Sydney
Adapting to Google’s new SERP features requires more than keyword optimisation. A tailored SEO strategy in Sydney that integrates AI awareness, content authority, and technical SEO is essential for businesses that want to remain visible across all types of search experiences — especially with Google’s evolving interface.
Whether your business is focused on professional services, e-commerce, or local trade, your website content must now serve both traditional organic ranking factors and AI-driven interpretations of your information.
How SEO Services Can Help You Adapt
Google’s generative search integrations are creating a new frontier for marketers. While some see AI Overviews as a threat to organic traffic, others see it as an opportunity — a way to dominate the top of the search results in a brand-new format.
Professional SEO services in Sydney can help businesses optimise their content for visibility in these summaries. From schema markup to featured snippet targeting, experienced SEO professionals are already reverse-engineering how AI Overviews pull information to give their clients an edge.
They also understand how to interpret blended data, giving businesses a clearer understanding of where growth is truly happening.
Speak With an SEO Consultant Who Understands AI
Navigating these changes without the right guidance can lead to misinterpreted reports, wasted resources, and missed opportunities. A skilled SEO consultant in Sydney can evaluate your existing site performance, optimise for AI and traditional SERP features, and create a strategy that accounts for how Google is evolving.
This includes using first-party data to interpret user behaviour post-click, refining content structure, and implementing AI-specific schema to improve clarity for Google’s indexing systems.
The Future of Search: Are You Ready?
Google’s clarification shows a clear direction: AI-generated summaries will play a prominent role in how users find and engage with content. Whether you’re excited or anxious about this shift, the reality is that your business needs to evolve with it.
If your content isn’t being surfaced by generative search, your competitors’ might be. That’s why it’s critical to take a proactive approach to content updates, performance tracking, and technical optimisation.
To succeed in this changing environment, you need more than just content — you need strategy, insight, and execution.
Engaging an SEO expert in Sydney is one of the most effective ways to future-proof your digital presence.
Conclusion
Google’s decision to group AI Overview links with standard web results in Search Console highlights just how intertwined AI is becoming with the everyday search experience. While it simplifies reporting in one sense, it also demands a deeper understanding of how users are engaging with your content.
For businesses in Sydney and beyond, this is a call to adapt — to refine not only your SEO but also your entire approach to digital marketing. As AI and traditional SEO continue to merge, staying ahead means staying informed, agile, and committed to quality content.
About the Author
Amir Neta is a senior SEO strategist and co-founder of NetiaWeb, with nearly 20 years of experience helping businesses grow through search. He has worked with clients across Australia — including Sydney, Melbourne, Perth, Brisbane, and regional areas — as well as in the USA, UK, and Europe. Specialising in local SEO, AI search readiness, and digital marketing strategy, Amir is passionate about helping businesses improve visibility, generate leads, and achieve long-term ranking success.