The news: Google is testing prescription drug ads in AI Mode and AI Overviews, per Adweek. Google AI Mode was piloting some US healthcare ads, but prescription drug ads were initially excluded. The new placements can run only as standard text and Shopping ads labeled as “sponsored.” Google is also barring them from more experimental ad formats, including ones that let AI Mode rewrite ad copy when it sees fit, per Adweek. They will be subject to Google's existing prescription drug advertising rules, including certification requirements for eligible advertisers such as drugmakers, online pharmacies, and telehealth companies.

Why it matters: Google is capitalizing on consumers' growing use of AI for health research and the substantial portion of digital ad spending pharma marketers are pouring into search.

Consumers now bring their medication questions to AI, from treatment comparisons to side effects.

• 40% of people who use AI for health queries research medications, the second-most common use case behind researching symptoms and conditions, per our January 2026 Digital Health survey.
• Google is meeting those queries with answers: AI Overviews appear for 75% of pharma-related keywords, per a May 2026 Eversana report.
• And that information is already changing what medications people take: 18% of AI health users have adjusted their medications after interacting with a chatbot, according to a March 2026 Rock Health report. For pharma brands, Google’s new placements sit directly in that decision path.

Healthcare and pharma marketers devote significant budgets to search advertising.

• Search will account for about 56% of their digital ad spending this year—the second-highest share among categories we track, behind travel. Spending will rise 19.5% YoY to nearly $18 billion in 2026, per our forecasts.