Google AI Overviews triple on branded search in a month
Google AI Overviews now appear on 82.06% of branded search queries tracked by DemandSphere as of Sept. 29, up from 26.12% on Sept. 1 — a jump DemandSphere says it cannot explain, per Semrush Blog. Ahrefs independently measured an 82.91% appearance rate on the same day in U.S. desktop results, up from 65.1% in August, and a smaller Nectiv test found AI Overviews present for 93 of 100 enterprise brand names. Google has not announced any change to how Overviews treat branded queries.
Why it matters: If the jump holds, brand-name searches — long treated as a lower-AIO-risk category — now carry roughly the same exposure to AI Overview summarization as generic queries, with no public explanation from Google for the shift.
The record: GoogleGoogle AI OverviewsAhrefs
Glossary: AI Overviews
Via Semrush Blog ↗
Posted to the wire October 6, 2026. Edited by Joe Balewski.