Google AI Mode and AI Overview Finally Live in Türkiye
AI Mode and AI Overview, which we've been eagerly following for a long time wondering when they would come to Turkey, have finally arrived! Google announced in a blog post published on February 18th that these features will be gradually rolled out in Turkey.
AI Mode and AI Overview, which have been actively used in over 180 countries, primarily in the US, for about a year, created a significant transformation in the search experience and had a major impact on the industry. During this process, noticeable changes occurred in website traffic, and especially on the SEO side, conventional approaches began to be questioned and the concept of GEO entered our lives. Now, being visible is not only related to position changes in search results; it's also directly related to how frequently you're shown as a source in AI responses and summaries.
What is Google AI Mode?
AI Mode is Google Search's newest AI-powered working method with advanced reasoning capability, multimodal structure, and conversation-based experience. Supported by Gemini 3, this model aims to generate direct answers to users' longer, detailed, and complex questions by taking search results out of the classic link list structure. When a user asks a question, AI Mode analyzes different sources on the web, brings information together, and provides an answer. It creates an opportunity for users to conduct deep research by showing the sources it references within the answer.
For example, when you search for visa-free and affordable international vacation recommendations for a honeymoon in AI Mode, you encounter direct suggestions. This provides a better experience compared to the classic search view.
When you perform the same query in the classic search view, it's likely that the listed websites won't fully meet your request.
Therefore, AI Mode will provide a very good experience for long-tail, complex questions, especially those aimed at obtaining information.
What is Google AI Overview?
AI Overview is Google's AI-powered result area that usually appears at the top of the search results page and provides a short, summarized answer to the user's query. While in the classic search experience users need to enter a website and gather information, AI Overview summarizes this information under one roof, providing a quick and general overview. This area is a content summary that Google creates by analyzing reliable sources on the web and is usually presented with links directing to relevant pages. This way, users both receive a quick answer and can transition to source sites for detailed information.
Below you can see how AI Overview will be displayed in Turkey.
AI Mode and AI Overview Comparison
Although AI Mode and AI Overview both focus on improving user experience, the areas where they are strong are different and should be preferred according to the usage scenario. In in-depth research, comparison, or multi-step information gathering processes, AI Mode provides more comprehensive and satisfying results; for example, it works better in queries like comparing visa-free countries for honeymoons by budget and season or getting product recommendations suitable for a specific need. In contrast, AI Overview provides a much more practical and fast experience in single-answer and quick information queries like "When is Valentine's Day?"
Below you can see the comparison table for AI Mode and AI Overview.
The Impact of AI Mode and AI Overview on the World & Turkey Forecast
With the activation of AI Mode and AI Overview in many countries, primarily in the US, the "information search" behavior gave way to a fast "information consumption" model. Since users can now reach the answers they're looking for without entering a website, zero-click rates increased while organic traffic drops of 20% to 60% were observed in some sectors. Although this transformation seems scary at first, it actually increased the importance of qualified visitors. Now the goal is to obtain references with high conversion rates rather than empty clicks that don't achieve conversion.
At this point, the concept of GEO (Generative Engine Optimization) started to come to the forefront. In the new era, producing only keyword-focused content is not enough; content needs to be understandable by artificial intelligence, summarizable, and referenceable as a reliable source. Work continues every day on additional actions that can be taken. For now, it's predicted that general SEO agendas such as structured data, EEAT, clear content hierarchy, and brand authority will also positively affect GEO.
AI Overview and AI Mode also changed the measurement approach for SEO teams. Average position, clicks, and impression counts are OUT; metrics like frequency of appearing in AI responses, reference visibility, and conversion-focused traffic are IN. In short, as the search experience evolved from link lists to answer engines, the competitive field also shifted from rankings to the axis of "being a reference within AI."
We predict that this process will follow a similar course in Turkey, and especially content-focused websites may encounter click losses and CTR drops in the initial phase. It seems that the goal will now be conversions and quality traffic rather than empty clicks and impression counts. Therefore, we predict that the increasing importance of GEO with this transformation will increase even more in Turkey.
