The playbook for Search has officially changed: In the age of AI, the best ads must be answers.

The playbook for Search has officially changed: In the age of AI, the best ads must be answers. At #GML2026, Vidhya Srinivasan, Google’s VP/GM of Ads & Commerce, shared a first look at new features that are reimagining the Google Ads experience. For marketers, this means new opportunities to capture high-intent users right at the exact moment they’re ready to buy. Here are the major announcements from the stage: 🔹𝗗𝗶𝗿𝗲𝗰𝘁 𝗢𝗳𝗳𝗲𝗿𝘀: Delivering exclusive, context-aware incentives directly inside AI conversations. 🔹 𝗔𝗜-𝗣𝗼𝘄𝗲𝗿𝗲𝗱 𝗦𝗵𝗼𝗽𝗽𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗔𝗱𝘀: A complete "glow-up" for retail ads, blending brand recommendations naturally with organic results and connecting users to real-time inventory. 🔹 𝗕𝘂𝘀𝗶𝗻𝗲𝘀𝘀 𝗔𝗴𝗲𝗻𝘁 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗟𝗲𝗮𝗱𝘀: Agentic ads that pre-fill information to deliver highly qualified leads. 🔹 𝗡𝗲𝘄 𝗔𝗱 𝗙𝗼𝗿𝗺𝗮𝘁𝘀 𝗶𝗻 𝗔𝗜 𝗠𝗼𝗱𝗲: Highly contextual placements that sit natively within conversational answers, offering a helpful, non-disruptive user experience. 𝗧𝗵𝗲 𝗯𝗼𝘁𝘁𝗼𝗺 𝗹𝗶𝗻𝗲: These new formats allow your brand to not just show up, but to answer your customer’s question. To be the best answer, you need to be AI-ready. Learn more → https://goo.gle/49cYe8c Subscribe to the Google Ads channel → @GoogleAds