Google pays about 100 publishers for AI answers, The Information says
Payments for content used in AI Overviews, AI Mode and Gemini range from under $1,000 over several months to more than $1 million a year, and some publishers cannot tell how they are calculated.
Google is paying about 100 digital publishers for content used in AI Overviews, AI Mode and Gemini, according to The Information, as reported by The Decoder and 9to5Google. The pilot started less than a year ago. Payments run from under $1,000 over several months to more than $1 million a year for the top earner.
One publisher told The Information it received $50,000 to $60,000 over a few months. Others said the money was under 0.1% of their ad revenue. Google says payments depend on how much each source contributes to an AI answer. Some participants told The Information they do not know how the figure is calculated, and it changes monthly without explanation.
Niche subjects such as anime and gaming are reported to earn more. Some larger publishers are holding out, The Decoder reported, to press for better rates, and The Decoder called the arrangement a prisoner's dilemma because each publisher negotiates alone rather than collectively.
The payments arrive as pressure on Google builds. The European Commission opened an antitrust investigation in December 2025, Penske Media, the owner of Rolling Stone, has sued over lost revenue, and a German court ruled AI Overviews count as Google's own content. Google has not commented on the figures in the coverage we reviewed.