Alphabet’s Q3 numbers show AI Mode growing faster than it earns, and every reason Google gave for the slowdown is temporary except one.

Alphabet just reported the fastest growth in Google search queries in five years; in the same quarter, its search revenue grew at the slowest rate in 2026.

Roger covered the earnings call earlier this week on Search Engine Journal, and it’s a great overview of the high points. I’m diving deeper to make a specific point here.

Search & other revenue grew 12% to $63.35 billion in the third quarter, according to Alphabet’s earnings release, down from 19% in the first quarter and 17% in the second. That was roughly $1.6 billion below analyst expectations, and CNBC reported it was the second straight quarter search came in under estimates. On the earnings call, Google’s chief business officer, Philipp Schindler, named one of the causes directly: strong growth in AI Mode queries “had an impact because of the lower monetization we were seeing in AI Mode.”

For two years, the argument over whether AI answers cut into search has run on inferred numbers: click-through studies, panel estimates, and referral samples, many from vendors with something to sell. This quarter, the effect shows up in a counted number, Google’s own revenue line, with a Google executive naming AI Mode as a cause. That changes the quality of the evidence, even if it doesn’t finalize the argument.

A quick disclosure before going further: I run a company that measures visibility inside AI answers, so a story about money moving into those answers isn’t neutral ground for me.

Source link