Sean Walsh
Sean is a Director at Intelligency heading up our digital marketing and client services operations. Sean has 15+ years experiencing working both in-house and agency with brands including Lloyds, Alstom, Hitachi, Lufthansa, Viaplay, DFDS Seaways and Mercedes-Benz.
A new study from Nielsen Norman Group shows that while generative AI is changing how people search for information, Google remains the first stop for most users. The research found:
- Google is still the default starting point for online searches because of habit and familiarity
- AI Overviews give quick answers, but they reduce the need to click through to websites
- Chat tools like Gemini and ChatGPT speed up research, but people still cross-check results in Google
- Familiarity with AI brands, such as casually calling ChatGPT “Chat,” is growing quickly
Why users keep starting with Google
The pull of familiarity is strong. Many participants admitted they went straight to Google simply because that is what they have always done. Some mentioned that their browser defaults to Google, which removes the need to think about alternatives. Others talked about how comfortable and natural it feels to start there. This kind of routine behaviour gives Google a powerful edge that even the most advanced AI tools struggle to overcome.
AI Overviews: a shortcut that is changing user behaviour
One of the most significant shifts the study highlighted was the role of Google’s AI Overviews. These are automatically generated summaries that appear at the top of the results page, blending information from multiple sources into a single, easy-to-read snapshot.
AI Overviews were first introduced in 2023 under the name “Search Generative Experience” (SGE). They were initially tested in Google Labs before rolling out more widely in 2024 and 2025. The goal was to provide quick, conversational answers to queries without users needing to click through multiple links. Over time, they evolved into a standard feature of the search results page.
For users, AI Overviews feel convenient. Instead of scanning through ten blue links or skimming several articles, they can glance at a summary and move on. For marketers and publishers, however, they represent a challenge. By pulling key information into the search results, AI Overviews reduce the incentive for users to click through to original websites. This means fewer opportunities to attract traffic, fewer ad impressions, and potentially less engagement with full content pages.
It is worth noting that this behaviour is not entirely new. Featured Snippets and Knowledge Panels have been surfacing direct answers within Google’s results for years. AI Overviews simply take this trend further by synthesising more complex information in a natural, conversational style. The difference is scale: where Featured Snippets answered narrow questions, AI Overviews can now handle broad, multi-part queries that previously would have driven more traffic to publishers.
For marketers, this means adapting content so that it is not only useful on your own site but also optimised to appear within these AI-driven summaries. Structuring information clearly, answering questions directly, and establishing authority signals are becoming more important than ever.
AI tools boost speed but not total reliance
When participants tried using Gemini or ChatGPT for research tasks, they often found the process faster and more useful than traditional search. AI was particularly good at helping users brainstorm, clarify ideas, or simplify complex subjects.
But even the heaviest AI users did not rely on it alone. Almost all of them went back to Google to cross-check facts or to dive deeper into trusted sources. This shows that AI is not yet seen as a single source of truth. Instead, it is an assistant that speeds things up, while Google remains the place people go to validate what they find.
Familiar names carry weight
Another interesting trend was how quickly users became comfortable with AI brands. Just as “Google” became a verb, some participants already referred to ChatGPT simply as “Chat.” Familiarity makes tools feel more trustworthy, and brand recognition could play a big role in which AI tools people stick with in the future.
What this means for marketers
Generative AI is reshaping the search journey, but it is not replacing it. The biggest barrier to AI adoption is not accuracy or technology, but the deeply ingrained human habit of starting with Google.
For marketers, this means two things. First, organic visibility in Google still matters, even if AI Overviews are reducing the number of clicks. Second, content strategies must begin to account for AI summarisation. It is no longer enough to write only for human readers. Your content also needs to be clear, structured, and credible enough to be picked up by AI systems.
