In a recent podcast episode, Ben Lawrence and Louis Meletiou catch up on the most interesting announcement from Google’s I/O 2025 showcase.

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Google I/O Recap 2025: What Healthcare Marketers Need to Know

This year’s Google I/O introduced significant updates that will directly affect how search marketing functions – from search engine optimisation (SEO) strategy and ad visibility to analytics and user journeys. While some elements felt like typical Google promotion, other developments pose real implications for healthcare and pharmaceutical marketers.

Whether you lead SEO for a healthcare provider or manage paid campaigns for a life sciences brand, here is what you need to know.

AI Mode: Search gets a conversational tab

Google has launched a new ‘AI Mode’ tab in the United States, with international rollout expected soon. This is not a feature within the traditional search engine results page (SERP) but a separate, Gemini-powered search tab. Users can toggle to it for a more conversational, AI-driven experience.

Traditional search remains the default for now, but Google’s long-term vision appears to favour user-determined defaults or even making AI Mode the primary interface.

Why it matters:

  • AI Mode generates fewer clicks, potentially reducing traffic

  • There is currently no referrer for AI Mode traffic, so it appears as direct or unknown in Google Analytics (GA)

  • Google has said this traffic will not be shown in Search Console (similar to AI Overviews)

  • Personalisation is increasing, with plans to connect Gmail and other data sources for more tailored responses

Are we entering a post-click world with zero visibility?

Ads now appear in AI Overviews and AI Mode

What was once a clean, ad-free space has now been monetised. Google has started placing sponsored links within AI Overviews and is testing the same in AI Mode.

Why it matters:

  • User experience may decline, reducing trust in AI-generated answers

  • Ads are now embedded within the answer space, not around it

  • Expect ad costs to shift as this new advertising space matures

Agentic search: AI that acts on your behalf

Google is advancing ‘agentic search’, where AI performs tasks for users – such as conducting research or completing checkout forms. Although still in early development, it signals a new kind of user journey.

Why it matters:

  • Forms must be accessible to bots

  • Free-text fields, poorly labelled inputs or inconsistent markup could block AI agents

  • It may be time to audit and standardise form user experience for AI interaction

Multimodal search and image recognition

Google Lens and multimodal search are expanding, allowing users to search using images or screenshots. While this may be less relevant in healthcare, it has significant implications in consumer-focused sectors like fashion.

Why it matters:

  • For now, the impact on medical search is limited

  • However, image optimisation remains a best practice

Query evolution: More specific, longer searches

Search queries in AI Mode tend to be two to three times longer than traditional searches. Users now ask highly detailed questions and expect equally tailored answers.

Why it matters:

  • Content must provide deeper, more focused answers

  • A lack of query data makes targeting more difficult

  • Testing and principle-based optimisation are essential

Structured data is still king

In Google’s own demonstrations, medical provider results were driven largely by Google Business Profiles (GBP) and reviews – not web pages.

Why it matters:

  • Schema, structured content and consistent name, address and phone (NAP) data are essential

  • Invest in your GBP presence

Google confirms that optimising for AI search uses the same core principles: content must be crawlable, indexable, and well-written, showing experience, expertise, authoritativeness and trustworthiness (EEAT).

Why it matters:

  • The basics remain important

  • Continue creating content with relevance, authority and clarity

The growing analytics black box

Data access is decreasing. Google has no plans to add AI Overview or AI Mode data to Search Console. In GA, AI Mode traffic is labelled as ‘direct’. This referrer obfuscation, combined with personalisation, makes strategy more speculative.

Why it matters:

  • Proving performance becomes more challenging

  • Testing, iteration and principle-led optimisation are vital

  • Strategic insights now rely more on proxy metrics and qualitative feedback

In summary: SEO evolves, but visibility shrinks

Much of this represents evolution rather than revolution. Google continues to promote its AI ecosystem, and not every feature will have equal impact. Expect slow uptake of agentic features, minimal short-term effect from tools like Lens, and more immediate disruption from AI Mode.

But the biggest concern? Disappearing data.

Without visibility, it becomes harder to validate strategic decisions. For healthcare marketers, this means:

  • Doubling down on structured content

  • Preparing for bot accessibility

  • Embracing testing

  • Planning for a world where search is personalised, answer-led and increasingly opaque