Google has started giving site owners a clearer way to measure and control how their content appears in generative AI features across Search and Discover.
On June 3, 2026, Google introduced new generative AI performance reports in Search Console, along with a separate control that lets website owners exclude their content from AI-powered search experiences. The update covers AI Overviews, AI Mode, and generative AI features in Discover, making it one of Google’s most important publisher-facing changes since AI results became a larger part of Search.
The reporting and opt-out control arrived together, but they solve different problems. The reports give site owners limited visibility into where their content appears inside AI surfaces. The control gives them a choice over whether their content can be used and shown in those features at all.
What the Reports Show
Google’s new reporting setup includes two separate views: one for generative AI features in Search and another for generative AI features in Discover.
For now, the data is limited to impressions. Site owners can see which pages received impressions, along with country, date, and device breakdowns. Pages are attributed to the canonical URL after redirects, and the usual Search Console limits apply, including the 1,000-row cap.
The reports also exclude Search Labs experiments, since those features are still in testing. If a site owner cannot see the report, Google says either the property is not yet included in the rollout or the site has not received enough impressions in those AI features.
One important detail is that generative AI performance is not stored in a completely separate system. The data still remains part of the general Search performance report. The new report simply isolates it so publishers can view AI-related impressions more clearly.
What Is Missing
The biggest omission is click data. The reports do not show clicks, click-through rate, average position, query-level information, or API access.
That makes the reports useful but incomplete. A publisher can see that a page appeared in AI Overviews or AI Mode, but not whether that appearance produced traffic. For businesses trying to understand whether AI visibility helps or hurts them, impressions alone do not answer the most important question.
The historical window is also short, with data beginning around May 18, 2026. That means many publishers are starting with a limited baseline, especially in markets where the feature is still rolling out.
Google has said more metrics will be added over time, but it has not given a specific timeline or confirmed which metrics will arrive next.
How the Opt-Out Works
The more strategic change is the new Search generative AI control. It appears under Settings in Search Console and gives site owners three options: include, exclude, or inherit from a parent property.
Include is the default. It allows a site’s links and content to appear in covered AI features and to help ground AI-generated responses.
Exclude blocks the site from appearing or being linked in those features. It also prevents the content from being used to ground AI responses there. A site that opts out receives no impressions or traffic from those AI surfaces.
Inherit allows a property to follow the setting of a parent property. This matters for large sites with domain, subdomain, and folder-level properties. A child property may inherit the top-level domain’s setting unless the owner overrides it.
The control began taking effect in Search on June 17, 2026, after an initial review window. Changes usually apply within one or two days, although propagation may take longer in some cases.
What It Does Not Do
The opt-out does not affect normal Google Search rankings. Google says the setting is not used as a ranking or inclusion signal elsewhere in Search.
It also does not block AI training. Site owners who want to limit training use need a separate control. It does not remove pages from Google Search either. For that, publishers still need standard indexing controls.
This is why the feature should not be treated as a single master switch for all AI use. It applies to specific generative AI features in Search and Discover, not every Google AI product or every possible use of site content.
Why Regulators Matter
The timing is not accidental. The control arrived alongside regulatory pressure in the United Kingdom, where authorities required Google to give publishers more control over whether their content is used to power AI features in Search.
That regulatory background matters because it explains why the opt-out exists and why future reporting may change. Regulators have pushed for clearer reporting around impressions, clicks, and click-through rates for generative AI features, separated from general search.
Google now has a window to expand what it provides. The key question is whether click and query data arrive before that period closes.
Mueller Clarifies Impressions
Google has also clarified how impressions are counted. An impression is based on a link to a site being visible inside AI Overviews or AI Mode. If a link only appears after a user expands or activates part of the result, the impression counts only after that action.
That helps explain why some site owners may see lower AI impression counts than expected. A brand mention without a visible link does not count. If the same URL appears once in an AI Overview and once in traditional results on the same page, Search Console records one impression rather than two.
What Publishers Should Watch
The rollout is still incremental, and some regions are only beginning to receive AI impression data. Google is also testing AI performance insights in Merchant Center for selected retailers, including grouped shopping questions connected to AI Mode and AI Overviews.
For now, Search Console gives publishers a starting point, not a complete picture. The opt-out control is the bigger decision because it forces site owners to choose between AI visibility and control.
Most publishers should avoid rushing. Review the data, check whether the report is available, understand inheritance settings, and decide whether appearing in AI features supports the site’s business model.
The larger shift is clear: SEO is no longer only about ranking in traditional search results. Site owners now need to understand how their content appears in AI answers, whether those appearances generate value, and how much control they are willing to exercise over Google’s new AI surfaces.
