What you’ll be able to do

Right, so you’ve seen it. That AI Mode tab sitting next to your search results, or an AI Overview popping up above the normal blue links, and you’re not quite sure what it is or whether you should be clicking on it. Fair enough. It does feel a bit like Google rearranged the furniture without telling anyone.

By the end of this you’ll be able to find AI Mode on your phone, your laptop, your tablet, whatever you’ve got. You’ll be able to ask it something the way you’d ask a mate, then follow up without repeating yourself. You can chuck a photo in if you need to. You’ll know where your searches go, how to delete them, how to report an answer that’s wrong, and when it’s actually faster to just do a normal search instead.

That last bit matters more than it sounds. AI Mode is genuinely useful for some things and completely the wrong tool for others. And it isn’t always right. Google says so itself.

Before you start

AI Mode is Google’s conversational way of searching. You type a question the way you’d ask a person, and instead of just handing you ten links, it writes you an answer, with links attached, and then lets you ask more questions off the back of that. Behind the scenes it’s splitting your question into smaller bits and running loads of searches at once (Google calls this “query fan-out”, which sounds more dramatic than it is).

It’s been rolling out in the UK since July 2025, and the UK is on Google’s list of supported countries for both AI Mode and AI Overviews. So if you’re here, you should have it, or be about to.

When Google isn’t confident about something, AI Mode just shows you normal web links instead of writing an answer. That’s actually a useful signal, not a failure. It means: go and read this yourself, don’t take my word for it.

AI Overviews are the shorter cousin, the summary box that sometimes appears above your normal results when Google’s systems decide AI will help. You can’t switch these off, but there’s a “Web” filter you can tap after searching that shows text links only, no AI summary. Worth knowing.

Google is refreshingly honest about both. AI Overviews, in its own words, “can and will make mistakes”. AI Mode “doesn’t always get it right”, and can misread a web page or miss context. So none of this is gospel. It’s a starting point.

A few account things. Some extras are adults only: the AI Mode experiment in Search Labs is 18 and over, and so is personalisation, where AI Mode uses your past searches to tailor answers. There’s also a “memory” feature where you tell it “Remember…” or “Forget…”, but that’s US-only, in English, for now. If it’s a child’s supervised account, the settings are managed in Family Link. And if you’re signed in with a work (Google Workspace) account, Search history may be unavailable unless your admin switches it on.

And here’s the bit people skip: if you’re signed in, what you search becomes part of your account history, and Google uses what people search and the feedback they give to improve these AI features. Reviewers see that data disconnected from your account, but it’s still going somewhere. Turn history off and future signed-in searches stop being saved to your account. Signed-out searches might still be used, though. Worth bearing in mind before you ask it something properly private.

Get set up

There are three ways in, and none of them need you to install anything new.

  1. Easiest: go to google.com/ai in any browser. Safari on an iPhone or iPad, Chrome on a laptop, anywhere really. Bookmark it and you’ve got AI Mode one tap away.
  2. Search at google.com like you normally would, then tap the AI Mode tab on the results page.
  3. If you’ve got the Google app on Android or iPhone, there’s an AI Mode option right there on the home screen.

On a phone, once you’re in, tap “All” at the top to flip between normal results and AI Mode.

Chrome does its own thing too, sort of. Google’s Chrome help shows an AI Mode button in the address bar: on a computer it’s on the right of the address bar (or press Tab then Enter), and on your phone you tap the address bar, then AI Mode. But, and this is important, Chrome’s own help says this “is not available to everyone or on every device” yet, and it’s reaching people outside the US gradually. So if it’s not there for you, that’s not you doing something wrong, that’s Google not having got to you yet. Use google.com/ai in the meantime.

If it is there and you don’t want it, right-click the address bar on a computer and untick “Always show AI Mode”. Done.

One more setting. AI Mode works without your search history switched on, but you won’t be able to pick up old conversations where you left off. Your call which matters more to you.

Try it yourself

Right, let’s actually use the thing. Type your question into the “Ask anything” bar at the bottom. Follow-ups go in the same bar, and it keeps the context of what you asked before, so you don’t have to repeat yourself. There’s a microphone in the bar too if you’d rather talk.

Here’s one to try if you’re weighing up a decision:

I'm in the UK. Compare [option A] and [option B] for [my situation]. Give me a short table, then list the sources you used and the date of each one.

Swap in whatever you’re actually deciding between, broadband providers, savings accounts, whatever. The bit about asking for sources and dates is doing a lot of work here, more on that in a second.

You can also add a photo. On a computer there’s a menu in the Ask anything bar, or you can drag and drop, or paste an image straight in. On a phone you tap Lens or that same menu and either upload a picture or take one there and then. On a computer or Android you can add PDFs and other files as well, or paste a link to a web page and ask about it. Try something like this, with the photo attached:

What does this sign or label say, and what should I do about it? I'm in [town], UK. Link me to the official page that confirms it.

A parking sign with four rules stacked on top of each other, a care label, a letter you don’t understand. That last bit of the prompt, the official page, is the part that matters, because it gives you something to check.

And if something in an answer sounds off, or you just want to know where it came from, push back on it:

You said [claim from the answer]. Which of your sources says that exactly? Quote the sentence and give me the link. If none of them do, say so.

This one’s my favourite, honestly. It makes the answer show its working, or admit it can’t.

One more thing worth knowing: if you’re reading an AI Overview on your phone and want to go deeper, tap “Show more” at the bottom, then type your follow-up into Ask anything. That carries you into AI Mode with the context kept, so you don’t start from scratch.

Check the result

Don’t just read the answer and nod. Open at least two of the linked sources and actually find the sentence the answer is built on. Sometimes it’s there, clear as day. Sometimes you have to squint. Sometimes it just isn’t there at all.

Check the dates on those sources too. An answer built on a three-year-old article about energy prices or visa rules is not an answer you want to act on.

Ask the same question a different way and see if you get the same answer. Google’s own advice says the same thing: check important info in more than one place, click the source links, try the other search results too, and ask different versions of your question. If the answer wobbles depending on how you phrase it, treat it as shaky.

And for anything to do with health, money or the law, go to the actual official source before you do anything. NHS for health. GOV.UK for anything official. The company itself if it’s about your account, your bill, your contract. AI Mode can point you in the right direction, but it shouldn’t be the last stop.

If an answer is flat wrong, tell Google. On an AI Overview, it’s thumbs down at the bottom (or the three-dot menu top right), then Report a problem, pick a category, add a bit of detail, Submit. AI Mode has the same thumbs up and down at the bottom of each response. Your search and its results go with that feedback, which is fair enough, that’s how it gets fixed.

If it doesn’t work

No AI Mode tab showing up? Go to google.com/ai directly rather than hunting through the results page. Update the Google app if you’re on your phone. Try signing in with your personal account rather than a work one.

No AI Mode in Chrome’s address bar: don’t panic, use google.com/ai instead. Chrome’s rollout is still patchy outside the US.

Got no AI answer at all, just plain links? That’s Google telling you it wasn’t confident enough. Treat that as useful, not broken.

Answer’s wrong: report it (see above), then do a normal search, or tap the Web filter to strip the AI bit out entirely.

Want a specific site, an exact phrase, or a date range? Skip AI Mode. A normal search with quotation marks or site: in front of the website will get you there faster, every time.

On privacy: anything you type into AI Mode while signed in gets saved to your account history and can be used to improve Google’s AI. So don’t paste in medical records, passwords, bank details, or anyone else’s personal information. Photos you upload go to Google too, same rules apply.

If you want something gone, open AI Mode history (on the left on a computer, at the top on a phone) and delete that conversation, or use “Delete all” at the top. Then check your Search history separately at myactivity.google.com/product/search, because if a search started as an AI Overview and you went deeper into AI Mode, deleting it from AI Mode history doesn’t remove it from Search history. Deleted items can hang around in My Activity for up to 24 hours before they’re cleared automatically, or you can go in and delete them by hand. For anything genuinely sensitive, use Incognito, which doesn’t save your search history to your Google Account.

Questions people ask

Where do I find AI Mode on Google?

There are three ways in and none need a new install: go to google.com/ai in any browser, search at google.com and tap the AI Mode tab on the results page, or use the AI Mode option on the Google app home screen. On a phone, tap "All" at the top to flip back to normal results.

Why is there no AI Mode button in my Chrome address bar?

Chrome's own help says it "is not available to everyone or on every device" yet, and it's reaching people outside the US gradually. If it's not there, that's not you doing something wrong, that's Google not having got to you yet. Use google.com/ai in the meantime.

Can I trust AI Mode answers?

Google admits AI Overviews "can and will make mistakes" and AI Mode "doesn't always get it right". Open at least two linked sources, find the sentence the answer is built on, check the dates, and ask the question a different way to see if the answer holds.

What should I not type into AI Mode?

Anything you type while signed in gets saved to your account history and can be used to improve Google's AI, so don't paste in medical records, passwords, bank details, or anyone else's personal information. Photos you upload go to Google too.

How do I delete my AI Mode conversations?

Open AI Mode history (on the left on a computer, at the top on a phone) and delete that conversation, or use "Delete all". If the search started as an AI Overview, also delete it from Search history at myactivity.google.com/product/search, because AI Mode history doesn't remove it there. Deleted items can linger in My Activity for up to 24 hours.

When should I use a normal Google search instead?

If you want a specific site, an exact phrase or a date range, skip AI Mode. A normal search with quotation marks or site: in front of the website will get you there faster, every time. You can also tap the Web filter to strip the AI bit out.

Keep exploring

If you want to go further with this, have a look at “How to get AI to fact-check something”, which digs into exactly the source-checking habit above. “How to get AI to help me research a topic” is the natural next step once you’re comfortable with follow-ups. There’s also “How to get AI to turn itself off” if you’d rather have less of this in your life, and “How to get AI to cite me” if you’re on the other side of it, running a business or a website and wanting your own stuff to be what these answers quote.

Sources and review notes

https://support.google.com/websearch/answer/16011537?hl=en-GB&co=GENIE.Platform%3DDesktop https://support.google.com/websearch/answer/16011537?hl=en-GB&co=GENIE.Platform%3DiOS https://support.google.com/websearch/answer/16011537?hl=en-GB&co=GENIE.Platform%3DAndroid https://support.google.com/websearch/answer/14901683?hl=en-GB https://support.google.com/chrome/answer/16704170?hl=en-GB https://support.google.com/websearch/answer/17212611?hl=en-GB https://support.google.com/websearch/answer/6096136?hl=en-GB https://support.google.com/websearch/answer/2466433?hl=en-GB https://blog.google/company-news/inside-google/around-the-globe/google-europe/united-kingdom/ai-mode-search-uk/

Review date: 26 September 2026 — every source above was opened and checked against the text on that date.