Google Pays 100 Publishers Unevenly for AI Content

Google's pilot pays about 100 publishers for content in AI Overviews, AI Mode and Gemini. Payments range from under $1,000 over months for small sites to over $1 million a year, with some receiving under 0.1 percent of ad revenue. Publishers say the formula is unexplained and changes monthly. The European Commission opened an antitrust investigation in December 2025.