Google brings Gemini-powered ad tools to India, with focus on agentic marketing

New Delhi: Google has begun rolling out several Gemini-powered advertising and commerce solutions for Indian marketers. The announcements were made at Google Marketing Live India 2026, where the company showcased India availability, beta access and early local use cases for tools across Search, YouTube, Shopping, creative production and measurement. Among the key India updates is Business Agent for Leads, currently in beta in India. Built with Gemini, the format places a brand agent inside a Search ad, allowing users to chat with an agent trained on the advertiser’s website before filling out a lead form. Google said upGrad recently started testing the solution in India to reduce dependence on cold-calling prospects. The agent engages students round the clock, answers questions in real time and helps qualify leads before counsellors step in for high-value conversations. Google also highlighted YouTube BrandStack, an all-in-one solution conceptualised and built in India. The product unifies planning, buying and measurement, bringing brand and performance objectives together instead of treating them as separate campaign tracks. Axis Max Life Insurance was among the first advertisers to deploy YouTube BrandStack with YouTube Connected TV during the cricket season. Google is also bringing YouTube Affiliate Partnerships Boost to India. The ad format allows brands to amplify organic creator videos where their products are already tagged, giving Shopping advertisers a way to convert creator-led content into paid campaigns. For retail advertisers, Google is launching AI Max for Shopping Campaigns in India. The solution uses Merchant Center feed context to help retailers respond to more complex and conversational product searches. Google also said AI Brief, powered by Gemini, will be available in beta in India. The feature allows advertisers to guide AI Max for Search campaigns using natural language instructions, including brand goals, audience priorities and guardrails. Demand Gen campaigns will also expand to Google Maps in India. Google is adding the ability to use Merchant Center product videos directly in campaigns that run across Discover and YouTube. The company is also upgrading Asset Studio, its AI-powered creative hub, with a natural language interface that can create on-brand text, image and video assets. Users will be able to upload briefs, reference images and brand guidelines to generate campaign assets. On measurement, Meridian, Google’s open-source marketing mix model, will be integrated with Google Analytics 360 globally. Google is also launching Attributed Branded Searches, a metric that connects YouTube video ad exposure with branded searches on Google. Google is also making Ask Advisor available in India in English. Built with Gemini, the tool works across Google Ads, Google Analytics, Google Marketing Platform and, soon, Merchant Center to provide proactive recommendations to advertisers. For merchants, Google said AI Performance Insights in Merchant Center will roll out in India in the coming months. The tool will allow brands to compare their visibility and performance across Google’s AI surfaces, including AI Mode, AI Overviews and the Gemini app. According to Google, 93% of consumer journeys for discovering new products or services in India involve Google and YouTube. The company also cited Kantar data to say 86% of surveyed online Indians used either YouTube or Google Search in the past 12 months.