Google AI Overviews began rolling out in 2024 and have continued expanding in 2025 and 2026. For most local service businesses, the immediate fear was that AI would replace their search results. The reality is more nuanced and, in some ways, more actionable.

AI Overviews pull from multiple sources to construct an answer to a search query. For local search queries — the best HVAC company near me, a dentist accepting new patients in Scottsdale, plumber emergency Las Vegas — the AI is pulling from review sites, local directories, GBP profiles, and well-structured website content. If your business is mentioned consistently and positively across these sources, you can appear in AI Overviews.

The practical implication: your local search strategy is now citation strategy. The more authoritative, consistent mentions of your business across quality local sources, the more likely you are to be surfaced by AI. NAP consistency — your Name, Address, and Phone number appearing the same way across all directories — has always mattered for local SEO. It matters more now because AI is synthesizing across sources.

For businesses offering specific expertise, the AI FAQ format is an opportunity. Write clear, definitive answers to the questions your customers search. Format them as questions and answers on your website. This content is exactly what AI Overviews pull to answer informational queries. A plumber who has written a clear explanation of when to replace a water heater versus repair it is more likely to appear in the AI answer for that query than a plumber with a generic homepage.

For purely transactional local queries — the user wants to call a plumber right now — traditional local pack results still dominate. The three-pack still matters. Your GBP still matters. AI Overviews have supplemented the results page for informational queries more than they have replaced the local pack for transactional ones.

The businesses that will struggle are those relying entirely on high-volume generic keywords with thin content. The businesses that will benefit are those with specific, authoritative content about what they actually do.