Google AI Overviews is malfunctioning: what changes for the SERP

The May 22 anomaly: what exactly happened

On May 22, 2026, several users reported on X an unexpected behavior of Google AI Overviews. Searching for the term “disregard”, the engine returned a chatbot-style response. The message read: “Got it. If you need anything else or have a new question later, just let me know!” . No summary, no synthesis of web sources.

The news was documented by The Verge , which reproduced screenshots of the anomaly. In the afternoon of the same day, Google removed the AI Overview for that query. In its place, the engine showed a list of news articles about the malfunction itself. So, the fix happened quickly, but the problem was already visible globally.

This episode isn't the first of its kind. AI Overviews have previously generated incorrect answers, misleading content, or baseless summaries. However, the nature of this specific error is different: the system confused its own role, responding as a conversational assistant rather than an informational aggregator.

Why this mistake is structurally different from previous ones

Previous AI Overviews errors mainly concerned content accuracy. The system synthesized wrong information but maintained the correct format. In this case, however, the model lost its functional identity. It responded as if it were a chatbot, not a search engine.

This suggests a possible contamination between the system's layers. Google is integrating increasingly deep conversational capabilities into its products. Consequently, the boundaries between Gemini, AI Overviews, and Google Search are becoming more blurred. According to MIT Technology Review , this convergence is intentional but carries risks of behavioral regression in the models.

Therefore, this is not a simple display bug. It is a sign of architectural instability in a system that handles billions of queries per day. For SMEs that depend on organic visibility, this has concrete implications.

Immediate impact on SERP visibility for Italian SMEs

AI Overviews occupy the highest position on the SERP for many informational queries. When they work correctly, they already reduce the click-through rate to organic sites. When they malfunction, the effect is even more destabilizing.

In fact, an incorrect or absent AI Overview unpredictably alters traffic distribution. Users may abandon the search, click on different results than usual, or resort to other search engines. For an SME that has optimized its pages to appear in the sources cited by AI Overviews, a system interruption temporarily nullifies that work.

We at SHM Studio We observe that many Italian companies do not yet have an explicit strategy to manage the variability of AI Overviews. However, this variability is now structural. It's not a matter of if it will happen again, but when. Therefore, strategies need to be adapted SEO consequently.

Three operational areas to secure immediately

The first area concerns monitoring presence in AI Overviews. Not all queries trigger this element. Furthermore, presence varies by sector, language, and device. It is crucial to map which strategic queries generate AI Overviews and how often your site is cited as a source.

The second area is traffic diversification. Excessive reliance on organic traffic from informational queries exposes SMEs to the risks of system instability. Consequently, it is advisable to balance investments between Organic SEO , google ads campaigns and LinkedIn campaigns .

The third area concerns the structural quality of the content. AI Overviews tend to cite pages with clear semantic markup, structured data, and authoritative content. Therefore, investing in SEO copywriting quality and a correct information architecture remains the strongest defense against the unpredictability of the system.

The most important signal: Google doesn't really control its own system

The most relevant aspect of this episode is not the bug itself. It is the speed with which it manifested and the nature of the fix. Google did not solve the problem at its root: it simply removed the AI Overview for that specific query.

This reactive approach confirms that the AI Overviews supervision system is still imperfect. According to research by Gartner , AI-powered search engines will face episodes of this type with increasing frequency in the next 18-24 months. Therefore, the stability that SEO operators took for granted is no longer guaranteed.

For Italian SMEs, this means that relying on a single digital acquisition channel is an increasingly risky strategy. On the contrary, an integrated approach that combines Digital marketing , SEO, and multi-touchpoint presence offer greater resilience.

What nobody is saying: the AI Overview as an uncontrollable variable

In public debate, AI Overviews are often described as a threat to organic traffic. However, there is a less discussed aspect: they are also a variable that no operator can directly control.

Unlike an organic result, which responds to relatively stable ranking signals, an AI Overview can appear, disappear, or change content without notice. Furthermore, the site cited as a source does not necessarily receive traffic proportional to its visibility in the Overview. Therefore, optimizing for AI Overviews is a legitimate goal, but it cannot be the only one.

In SHM Studio we recommend that SMEs treat presence in AI Overviews as a bonus, not a primary KPI. The main strategy must remain rooted in controllable metrics: organic positions, direct traffic, conversions from digital campaigns and user experience quality on site .

Outlook: what to expect in the coming months

Google will continue to expand AI Overviews. Last year, in 2025, the feature was extended to new markets and languages, including Italian for some query categories. Later, in 2026, coverage increased further. Therefore, episodes like the one on May 22nd will become more frequent, not less.

SMEs investing in AI-ready strategies and in a structured digital presence will be better positioned to absorb these fluctuations. Finally, those who have not yet started a review of their SEO strategy in light of AI Overviews should do so before the phenomenon becomes further consolidated.

To delve deeper into the operational implications for your business, you can consult the SHM Studio blog or contact the team for a personalized evaluation.