Google made AI performance insights in Merchant Center available across Australia, Canada, India, New Zealand and the U.S. on September 16, 2026. Its announcement says the report compares how a retailer's brand and products appear across surfaces including AI Mode and AI Overviews.
That gives a merchandising team a specific place to examine product discovery. Establish a baseline for a relevant category, then choose a small set of products whose descriptions need a clearer explanation of use or fit. Retain the original feed values and record the date of each change so later observations have a meaningful reference point.
The announcement also describes U.S. betas and gradual checkout rollouts. A team should confirm access in its own account before making a feature part of a launch commitment.
Google also describes conversational attributes that add context to product listings. In Google's test with lululemon, submitted attributes appeared in 50% of relevant AI Mode recommendations. That reported result concerns whether supplied information appeared in answers. It provides a reason to examine the descriptions an assistant uses, with commercial impact assessed from the retailer's own orders.
For a useful feed test, choose a customer question that has a verifiable answer. A bag's laptop compartment dimensions or a garment's care requirements are better test material than a broad claim that the item is ideal for everyone. Compare the information supplied with what the shopping experience actually presents.
Repeat the same questions across multiple checks before attributing an answer change to the feed edit. Lantern's study of repeated AI answers explains why a single observation can give a misleading impression of movement.
The immediate work is to establish the baseline and make one documented improvement. A record of what changed gives the next report something specific to explain.
Common questions
Where are Merchant Center AI performance insights available?
Google's September 16 announcement names five markets: Australia, Canada, India, New Zealand and the U.S. Account access should be confirmed in Merchant Center.
Does the lululemon result measure sales growth?
It measures how often submitted conversational attributes appeared in relevant recommendations during Google's test. Order results need a separate measurement.
Which product information should a team test?
Use a specific, substantiated detail that answers a common customer question. Keep the original value and the change date so later observations can be compared.