By Marcus Goh, Founder of PULSE Digital · First published 17 October 2025 · Last updated 3 October 2026
Quick answer: Google AI Mode is a conversational search mode, available in English in Singapore since August 2025. It answers a patient’s question by searching on their behalf, reading several sources and writing one answer with links. For clinics, it rewards pages that state clear medical facts, answer real patient questions and stay within MOH, HCSA and SMC advertising rules. Clinic sites that do this get cited; the rest get summarised over.
What is Google AI Mode?
AI Mode is a separate way of searching inside Google, opened from a tab beside “All” in the results or from the AI Mode button on the Google app. Instead of returning ten links, it breaks a question into smaller searches, reads the pages those searches find, and writes a single answer with the sources linked beside it. The patient can then ask a follow-up without starting again.
Google expanded AI Mode to more than 180 countries and territories in English on 21 August 2025, which is when it reached Singapore. At Google I/O in May 2026, Google brought it closer to AI Overviews, so a question can begin as an AI Overview and carry on into AI Mode as a conversation. For a clinic, the practical point is the same either way: more of a patient’s research now happens inside Google’s answer, before they ever reach your website.
How patients use AI Mode differently from normal search
Patients don’t type “dentist Tampines” into AI Mode. They ask the whole question:
- “Which clinics near Tampines do Invisalign, and what should I ask at the first consultation?”
- “My child has had a fever for three days. When should I see a doctor instead of waiting?”
- “What’s the difference between a dermatologist and an aesthetic doctor for acne scars in Singapore?”
Then they ask a follow-up: “Which of those are open on Saturday?” AI Mode answers each part by pulling from clinic websites, Google Business Profiles, directories and health information sites. It names a few clinics and links to the pages it used. A clinic whose website only says “We provide comprehensive, patient-centred care” gives it nothing to quote.
Why AI Mode matters more for clinics than for most businesses
AI Mode leans heavily on health information. When Ahrefs compared AI Mode and AI Overview answers for the same searches, it found AI Mode cited health sites at roughly double the rate of AI Overviews, and the two features cited the same pages only 13.7% of the time.
Two things follow for clinics. First, health questions are where AI Mode is most likely to send patients to a source, and that source could be your website. Second, ranking well in normal search or appearing in AI Overviews doesn’t guarantee AI Mode will cite you, because it often picks different pages. Google also holds health content to a higher standard of trust than most topics, because a wrong answer can affect someone’s health. Clear authorship, medical accuracy and up-to-date information matter more here than anywhere else.
Compliance and AI visibility point the same way
This is where clinics in Singapore have an advantage they rarely use. The things MOH, HCSA and the SMC Ethical Code require in healthcare advertising are largely the same things AI Mode needs in order to trust and quote a page:
| What the rules require | What AI Mode needs |
|---|---|
| Factual, verifiable information | Clear facts it can lift into an answer |
| No testimonials or patient endorsements | Information about the treatment, not opinions about the clinic |
| No superlatives or unverifiable claims (“best”, “leading”) | Specific statements it can check against other sources |
| Responsible, educational content | Answers to real questions, written for patients |
A page full of claims the rules don’t allow — testimonials, “best clinic in Singapore”, before-and-after promises — breaches the rules and gives AI Mode nothing reliable to quote. A plain, factual, doctor-reviewed page that explains a condition, a treatment and what to expect satisfies both.
Our healthcare advertising guides set out the detail: MOH advertising guidelines, patient testimonials, before-and-after photos, the SMC code for doctors, HSA rules on Botox and fillers and PDPA consent for marketing.
How to make your clinic visible in AI Mode
1. Make sure Google can read your pages
AI Mode can only use what Google can crawl and index. Check that your treatment pages aren’t blocked, aren’t hidden behind booking widgets, and don’t carry key information only inside images or text that appears only after a script runs. If your doctors’ qualifications or your clinic hours are in a picture, Google can’t quote them.
2. State the facts plainly near the top of each page
Open every service page with one or two sentences that say what the treatment is, who it’s for, and which doctor provides it. Include your clinic’s name, its location in Singapore, and how to book. Use the same wording on your Google Business Profile, so every source agrees.
3. Write one page per question patients actually ask
List the questions your front desk answers every week: what a procedure involves, recovery time, risks, when to see a specialist instead of a GP. Give each important one a clear heading and a direct answer in the first sentence, then the detail. Keep it educational and factual, as the rules require.
4. Show who wrote and reviewed it
Name the doctor who reviewed each medical page, with their specialty and registration, and show a “last reviewed” date. This is the strongest trust signal you can give for health content.
5. Keep your Google Business Profile complete
For “near me” and “open on Saturday” questions, AI Mode draws on local listings. Keep hours, services, location and photos current. Reply to reviews carefully, and don’t reuse them as testimonials on your website or in ads; our patient testimonials guide explains where the line is.
6. Review medical pages every three months
Treatment guidance, prices, opening hours and regulations change. AI answers favour recent information. Update the content when something changes, and only change the “last reviewed” date when you’ve genuinely reviewed it.
How to check whether AI Mode mentions your clinic
Open Google, switch to AI Mode, and ask the questions your patients ask, in a private browsing window so your history doesn’t skew the result. Note whether your clinic is named, which pages are linked, and which clinics appear instead. Repeat monthly with the same questions so you can see change over time.
We do this every month for the clinics we work with, and for ourselves. In our October 2026 checks, ChatGPT, Gemini and Claude all named PULSE first when asked for a healthcare marketing agency in Singapore that understands MOH and SMC rules. ChatGPT and Claude both cited the healthcare advertising guides listed above, which is the same approach this article recommends for clinics: specific, factual, rules-aware content.
Will AI Mode reduce traffic to my clinic's website?
For some searches, yes. When AI Mode answers a general question fully — “what is a root canal?” — fewer people click through to any website. But patients still need to choose a clinic and book, and AI Mode links to the pages it uses. The visits that do arrive tend to come from people further along in their decision. The clinics that lose most are the ones whose pages AI Mode can’t use at all.
If your Google Search Console shows impressions rising while clicks fall, that is usually AI answers absorbing simple informational searches, not a fault with your site.
Frequently asked questions
Is Google AI Mode available in Singapore?
Yes. Google expanded AI Mode to more than 180 countries and territories in English from 21 August 2025, including Singapore. Patients can open it from the AI Mode tab in Google Search or in the Google app.
What is the difference between AI Mode and AI Overviews?
An AI Overview is a short AI summary at the top of normal search results. AI Mode is a separate conversational mode that searches more widely and lets patients ask follow-up questions. They often cite different pages: Ahrefs found they shared only 13.7% of cited URLs for the same searches.
Does AI Mode replace SEO for clinics?
No. AI Mode uses Google’s search index, so a clinic website still needs to be crawlable, accurate and well organised. Google describes optimising for its AI features as still being SEO. What changes is the emphasis: clear facts, answered questions and visible medical expertise matter more than keywords.
Is optimising for AI Mode allowed under MOH advertising rules?
Making your website clear and accurate isn’t advertising in itself, but the content on your pages is still subject to the rules. That means no testimonials, no superlative or unverifiable claims, and educational rather than promotional medical information. Content written within the rules is also the content AI Mode is most able to quote.
How do I know if my clinic appears in AI Mode?
Ask AI Mode the questions your patients ask, in a private browsing window, and note whether your clinic is named and which pages are linked. Do it monthly with the same questions to track changes.
About the author
Sources
– 9to5Google, Google AI Mode expanding to 180 countries (21 August 2025): https://9to5google.com/2025/08/21/google-ai-mode-countries-agentic/ – Search Engine Journal, Google AI Mode & AI Overviews cite different URLs, per Ahrefs report: https://www.searchenginejournal.com/google-ai-mode-ai-overviews-cite-different-urls-per-ahrefs-report/563364/ – Google Search Central, Optimizing your website for generative AI features on Google Search: https://developers.google.com/search/docs/fundamentals/ai-optimization-guide – PULSE Digital, Google I/O 2026: What the AI Search Overhaul Means for Singapore Businesses: https://pulsedigital.sg/google-i-o-2026-what-the-ai-search-overhaul-means-for-singapore-businesses/
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