How Generative AI Disrupts Search: An Empirical Study of Google Search, Gemini, and AI Overviews
Published in 2026 ACM SIGIR Conference on Research and Development in Information Retrieval, 2026
This paper shows that Google’s generative search engines significantly differ from Google Search in terms of the retrieved sources for a user query. It further explores what types of content see substantial changes in visibility due to generative search and considers the implications for publishers and users.
Recommended citation: Grossman, R., Liu, S., Chen, M., Smith, M., Borcea, C., & Chen, Y. (2026). How Generative AI Disrupts Search: An Empirical Study of Google Search, Gemini, and AI Overviews. Forthcoming in the ACM SIGIR Conference on Research and Development in Information Retrieval.
