What Happened: Google Tests an Opt-Out for Publishers
In July 2026, Google began testing a mechanism that allows publishers to exclude their pages from AI Overviews, AI Mode, and generative features in Google Discover — while keeping them in traditional search results. This is a response to a long-standing complaint from content teams: Google’s generative answers often use publisher content without sufficient attribution, clicks, or compensation.
For editorial teams, content marketing departments, and long-form publishers, this is not a cosmetic update. It’s the first major instance of Google separating
