Google has added a control in Search Console that lets site owners keep their content out of AI Overviews and AI Mode without dropping out of regular search results. The setting sits under Settings > "Search generative AI" at the domain level, and it decides whether a site is included in or excluded from AI Overviews, AI Mode, and generative AI in Discover. This is the first time owners can make that call without also losing their standard blue-link listings, as reported by PPC Land.
What the setting actually does
The control lives in Search Console under Settings, in a section labeled "Search generative AI." A site owner picks whether the domain is included in or excluded from Google's generative AI surfaces. Those surfaces are AI Overviews, AI Mode, and generative AI features inside Discover. Child properties get a third choice called "inherit," which tells them to follow whatever the parent property is set to.
Changes take one to two days to propagate. Once a site opts out, its content stops appearing in those AI-generated answers, but its position in conventional search is untouched. Rankings stay where they were.
What it does not touch
Two things stay outside the scope of this toggle. It has no effect on conventional rankings, so opting out will not push a page up or down in the standard results. It also does not govern whether your content is used to train Google's AI models. That is still controlled separately through Google-Extended, the crawler token publishers already use for training preferences.
Why this control exists now
Google began testing the option on June 3, 2026, under pressure from the UK Competition and Markets Authority. Until this point, the choice for publishers was blunt: appear everywhere Google decided to place your content, or block Googlebot and disappear from search entirely. There was no way to sit out AI Overviews while keeping organic listings.
The current version works at the domain level. Google has said page-level controls are planned for March 2027, which would let owners exclude specific URLs rather than the whole property.
The trade-off owners now have to make
The reason this matters is the decision it forces. AI Overviews and AI Mode answer questions directly on the results page, which means fewer people click through to the source. Opting out removes your content from those answers, so it can no longer be summarized without a visit. The cost is visibility inside the fastest-growing part of search. The benefit is that anyone who wants your information has to come to your page for it.
There is no universal right answer. A publisher that lives on ad impressions and on-site conversions weighs it differently from a brand that mainly wants its name surfaced in an AI answer, click or no click. What changed is that the lever exists at all, and it can be pulled without torching organic traffic.
| Question | Answer |
|---|---|
| Where is the setting? | Search Console > Settings > "Search generative AI" |
| What can you exclude? | AI Overviews, AI Mode, generative AI in Discover |
| Does it change rankings? | No |
| Does it stop AI training? | No, that stays with Google-Extended |
| How long to take effect? | 1 to 2 days |
What this means for Thai marketers
Plenty of Thai publishers and brands have watched AI Overviews answer a query before the user ever reaches their site. Until now, the only response was to accept the lost clicks. This setting gives a documented way to weigh that loss against the reach AI answers provide, and to act on it per domain.
For most Thai businesses the smarter move is not to rush for the exit, but to measure first. Pull the queries where AI Overviews already show up for your pages, check how much traffic those pages still earn, and decide whether being cited without a click is worth more or less than a clean organic listing. That measurement is exactly the kind of work our team handles in AI SEO and generative engine optimization engagements. It also feeds directly into a wider SEO strategy for the Thai market, since the opt-out choice sits on top of your normal search performance rather than replacing it.
FAQ
Will opting out hurt my Google rankings?
No. Google states the control does not affect conventional rankings. Your standard search listings stay in place.
Can I exclude just one page?
Not yet. The current control works at the domain level. Google has said page-level controls are planned for March 2027.
Does this stop Google from training AI on my content?
No. Model training is governed separately through Google-Extended, not by this toggle.
Next step
If you are not sure whether AI Overviews are helping or draining your Thai search traffic, start with the data before you touch the switch. Talk to our team about a read on where your pages stand across both AI answers and organic results, and what the opt-out would actually cost or save you.
