Elyse Betters Picaro / ZDNET Do me a favor and Google something. Anything. Drawing a blank? Try, "how to clear iPhone cache." I bet, instead of getting a lineup of trusty blue links for you to click and read through (including ZDNET's own definitive guide on the subject), you're greeted by an AI-generated paragraph at the top that answers your question before you even scroll. That's Google's AI Overviews, and while it does often give you handy summaries meant to save you time, it also steers you away from publishers who are putting in the actual work and research to create the great content that Google is actively scraping. Also: Fed up with AI scraping your content? This open-source bot blocker can help - here's how A recent Pew Research Center study tracked 900 US adults and found that, when an AI Overview appears, users click a traditional search link only 8% of the time -- versus 15% when no summary is shown. About 58% of adults saw at least one AI Overview during their searches, and only 1% of those led to a click on a cited source within the summary. Perhaps more troubling, they were likelier to end their browsing session after seeing an AI Overview -- suggesting many people stop investigating once the AI has spoken. Even if you don't care about AI Overviews causing a devestating impact on journalism, there are concerns these AI-generated summaries can provide misleading and or even flat-out wrong information. Remember the mid‑2024 fiasco when AI Overviews confidently recommended using glue to keep pizza cheese from sliding off? Yeah, that really happened. Also: People are Googling fake sayings to see AI Overviews explain them - and it's hilarious What's frustrating is Google still hasn't created an official "off" switch. But there is good news: workarounds exist. While you can't outright disable AI Overviews, you can get back to classic search experience. How to hide or avoid AI Overviews in Google Search As mentioned above, you can't really turn off AI Overviews -- at least not officially. But you can hide and avoid them. Here's how. 1. Use '-AI' in your search query Works on desktop and mobile Appending a simple "-AI" modifier to your search query is hands-down the quickest, easiest way to break the AI‑summary algorithm and get a list of standard blue links. How to search with the '-AI' modifier Open your desktop or mobile browser and head to google.com. You could also use the Google app. In the search bar, type your search term (e.g., "how to turn off ACR on TV") plus -AI at the end. So it should read "how to turn off ACR on TV -AI". Press Enter. Enjoy classic search results, with no AI Overview in sight. Also: This absurdly simple trick turns off AI in your Google Search results You might still see a featured snippet with this search method. Those have been around for years, but unlike AI Overviews, they include a prominent link to the source and usually show just a small excerpt of the information you're looking for, encouraging you to click through to learn more. AI Overviews, on the other hand often summarize the entire answer, leaving little reason to for you to investigate further. Show more Elyse Betters Picaro / ZDNET 2. Enable Web Guide mode Works on desktop Google Search recently began offering a new Web Guide mode -- a Search Labs experiment you can opt in to or enable. It still uses AI to organize your search results, but it pushes AI Overviews down the page. So, at the top, you'll now see those beloved classic links, with generated summaries appearing further below. Also: Google's new Search mode puts classic results back on top - how to access it This is just a test and may never roll out beyond Search Labs, but it's worth enabling to see if you like the experience. It's the best of both worlds: you get AI-powered organization and summaries without giving up the familiar list of links when you just want straightforward search results. How to enable and use Web Guide Sign into your Google account, go to Search Labs, and select the Web Guide experiment. Click the "Try the new AI‑organized web results" toggle on Web Guide to enable the experience. Perform any search on desktop. You'll then see the Web Guide experience under the Web tab alongside All, Images, Videos, etc. Currently, Web Guide is only available to desktop users. Show more Elyse Betters Picaro / ZDNET 3. Just search with Google's Web tab Works on desktop in Chrome Did you know Google's Web tab, which is typically hidden under the More menu in Google Search, gives you the classic search experience with no AI Overviews? You need to click over to it to see it, though, and that's tedious. Also: People don't trust AI but they're increasingly using it anyway But, if you're a Chrome power user wanting to skip AI Overviews every time straight from the address bar, there is a neat hack you can try. By creating a custom Site search shortcut, you can force your browser to automatically run searches in the Web tab, so you don't have to switch over to it with every single query. How to create a Site search shortcut Tip: Don't enable Web Guide mode if you want to try this option, as Web Guide changes Google Search's Web tab to show AI summaries below classic blue links. Open Chrome. Go to Chrome in the menu bar and then Settings > Search engine > Manage search engines and site search . Under Site search, click Add. Fill in: - Name: Google (Web) - Shortcut: https://www.google.com/ - URL: {google:baseURL}search?udm=14&q=%s Click Add. Then, next to your new custom Site search, click the three-dot menu and select Make default. Now, every address‑bar query will use the Web filter by default -- and AI Overviews will be a thing of the past. Firefox and Edge have equivalent "Manage Search Engines" panels where you can add the same URL pattern on desktop. Firefox even lets you do it on mobile. Show more Elyse Betters Picaro / ZDNET Elyse Betters Picaro / ZDNET FAQ Can I just turn off AI Overviews in Google Search? No. There is no official way to turn off Google's AI summaries, but you can hide or avoid AI Overviews using the four methods described above. These are the only known workarounds as of July 2025. Will these workarounds ever break or stop working? Possibly. For instance, Chrome extensions may become unavailable for one reason or another, or Search Labs might end its Web Guide mode experiment. I'll update this guide if and when any of these hacks stop working. What's the difference between Google's Web tab and Web Guide mode? Google's Web tab, which is typically hidden under the More menu in Google Search (after All, Video, News, Books, etc.,) is pure, classic search results. You get 10 or so blue links and no AI summaries. Also: Google's AI Mode may be the upgrade Search desperately needs - how to try it for free Web Guide, however, is a new Search Labs experiment. It uses Gemini AI to group links by topic into categories. AI snippets are still there, but they have been moved further down below a couple of blue links. Which method should I try first? Honestly, I've just gotten use to searching with "-AI" at the end of all my queries. It's quick and easy and works both on mobile and desktop, no matter the browser or app you're using -- no fuss, no muss. Want more stories about AI? AI Leaderboard, our weekly newsletter. Show more