Google-Extended is a robots.txt product token that lets site owners control whether content Google has crawled may be used for training Gemini models and for grounding in Gemini apps and Vertex AI. Google announced it on September 28, 2023.
At a glance
- Operator
- Purpose
- Controls use of crawled content for Gemini training and grounding
- robots.txt token
Google-Extended- Respects robots.txt
- robots.txt token only, fetching uses Google's existing crawlers
- Since
- 2023-09-28
Last checked:
How does Google-Extended work?
Google-Extended is a standalone token. According to Google’s crawler documentation, it has no separate HTTP user agent string, and crawling runs through Google’s existing user agents. For that reason it never appears as its own entry in server logs.
The documentation also states that Google-Extended does not affect a site’s inclusion in Google Search and is not used as a ranking signal. Google describes AI Overviews and AI Mode as features of Search. For these, it lists no requirements beyond being indexed and eligible for snippets. So Google-Extended most likely does not govern them (assessment, not a statement from Google).
| Bot | Operator | Purpose | robots.txt token | robots.txt according to the operator | IP list published? |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Google-Extended (this term) | Controls Gemini training and grounding (no crawler of its own) | Google-Extended | robots.txt token only; fetching is done by existing Google crawlers | n/a (no user agent of its own) | |
| GPTBot | OpenAI | Training | GPTBot | Disallowing it signals content should not be used to train foundation models | yes (openai.) |
| OAI-SearchBot | OpenAI | Search (ChatGPT) | OAI-SearchBot | opted-out sites are not shown in ChatGPT search answers | yes (openai.) |
| ChatGPT-User | OpenAI | User-triggered fetch | ChatGPT-User | robots.txt rules may not apply, says OpenAI (user-initiated) | yes (openai.) |
| ClaudeBot | Anthropic | Training | ClaudeBot | yes, Anthropic says its bots honor robots.txt | yes (claude.) |
| Claude-SearchBot | Anthropic | Search (Claude) | Claude-SearchBot | yes, Anthropic says its bots honor robots.txt | yes (claude.) |
| PerplexityBot | Perplexity | Search (Perplexity), not used for model training | PerplexityBot | controllable via robots.txt; the docs contain no explicit compliance statement | yes (perplexity.) |
| Applebot-Extended | Apple | Controls AI training (does not crawl, says Apple) | Applebot-Extended | robots.txt token only, applies to content Applebot already crawled | n/a (no crawler of its own) |
| CCBot | Common Crawl | Open web crawl archive | CCBot | can be blocked via robots.txt, says Common Crawl | yes (index.) |
| Meta-ExternalAgent | Meta | Training foundation AI models, improving products | meta-externalagent | can be blocked via robots.txt, says Meta | not stated by the operator |
A selection of ten AI bots from major operators, not a complete list. All values come from each operator's own documentation (as of 8 October 2026). The table does not show whether a bot actually complies with robots.txt; it only reflects what operators state. User agents can be spoofed; published IP lists or reverse DNS identify genuine requests. Sources: OpenAI: Overview of OpenAI Crawlers; Anthropic: Does Anthropic crawl data from the web, and how can site owners block the crawler? (updated 2026-04-07); Perplexity: Perplexity Crawlers; Google: Google's common crawlers (last updated 2026-07-14); Google: Overview of Google crawlers and fetchers (last updated 2026-06-12); Google: Verifying Google crawlers and fetchers (IP range files); Apple: About Applebot (2026-09-04); Meta: Meta Web Crawlers; Common Crawl: CCBot. Last checked: .
| Crawler | robots.txt token | Purpose | Effect of blocking on Google Search | Shows up in logs as |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Googlebot Smartphone | Googlebot | Crawling for Google Search (incl. Discover), Images, Video, News; main crawler for most sites | pages are no longer crawled for Search | Googlebot/ with an Android identifier |
| Googlebot Desktop | Googlebot | same as Smartphone, simulates a desktop user | same as Smartphone (shared token, cannot be blocked separately) | Googlebot/ without a mobile identifier |
| Storebot-Google | Storebot-Google | Shopping: product discovery and indexing | affects Shopping surfaces incl. the Shopping tab in Search | Storebot-Google/ |
| GoogleOther | GoogleOther | generic crawler for product teams, e.g. one-off research and development crawls | doesn't affect any specific product, says Google | GoogleOther |
| Google-InspectionTool | Google-InspectionTool, Googlebot | Testing tools: Rich Results Test, URL Inspection in Search Console | none (affects only the testing tools) | Google-InspectionTool/ |
| Google-CloudVertexBot | Google-CloudVertexBot, Googlebot | Crawls requested by the site owner for Vertex AI Agents | none | Google-CloudVertexBot |
| Google-Extended (this term) | Google-Extended | Controls whether content is used for Gemini training and grounding | none; Google says it doesn't affect inclusion in Search and isn't a ranking signal | not at all (no user agent string of its own) |
Googlebot Smartphone and Desktop share the Googlebot token and cannot be targeted separately in robots.txt. Google says most Googlebot requests come from the mobile crawler. Google-Extended is a control token only; crawling uses existing Google user agents. All crawlers listed here are Google common crawlers, which always respect robots.txt for automatic crawls. Sources: Google: Google's common crawlers (last updated 2026-07-14); Google: Overview of Google crawlers and fetchers (last updated 2026-06-12); Google Search Central: Googlebot (last updated 2026-02-03). Last checked: .
- The IETF publishes the Robots Exclusion Protocol as RFC 9309 on the Standards Track. It defines how crawlers interpret the rules in a robots.txt file.Source: rfc-editor.org
- OpenAI introduces web crawler permissions for AI. Site owners can use them to state whether their content may be used for AI training.Source: openai.com
- Google introduces Google-Extended. This robots.txt token controls whether content helps improve Bard and the Vertex AI generative APIs.Source: blog.google
- After Bard is renamed, Google's documentation lists Gemini Apps as a product affected by Google-Extended.Source: developers.google.com
- Apple introduces the foundation models behind Apple Intelligence. Publishers can opt out of training use, according to Apple's documentation via Applebot-Extended.Source: machinelearning.apple.com
- Cloudflare lets customers block AI bots, scrapers and crawlers with a single click.Source: blog.cloudflare.com
- With the SearchGPT prototype, OpenAI separates search from training. Sites can appear in search results even if they opt out of AI training.Source: openai.com
- Google adds Google-CloudVertexBot to its list of crawlers. It crawls sites at the owner's request to build Vertex AI Agents.Source: developers.google.com
- Based on publisher feedback, Google clarifies the description of the Google-Extended token.Source: developers.google.com
- Cloudflare proposes that bots and agents cryptographically sign their requests, based on HTTP Message Signatures (RFC 9421).Source: blog.cloudflare.com
- Cloudflare changes its default to block AI crawlers unless site owners decide otherwise.Source: blog.cloudflare.com
- Cloudflare launches pay per crawl as a private beta. Crawlers either pay per request or receive a 402 status code with a price.Source: blog.cloudflare.com
OpenAI only says “last summer” for its crawler permissions (post of May 7, 2024); the often-cited August 2023 date for GPTBot comes from press reports. ClaudeBot, Claude-SearchBot, Claude-User, PerplexityBot, Perplexity-User, OAI-SearchBot, ChatGPT-User, Meta-ExternalAgent and CCBot are documented by their operators, but without a verifiable launch date. Last checked: .
Example
A robots.txt entry following Google’s documentation:
user-agent: Google-Extended
allow: /archive/1Q84
disallow: /archive/
Everything under /archive/ is then off limits for the Gemini purposes above, except the one allowed page.
Common questions
Does blocking Google-Extended hurt rankings? Not according to Google. The token is not a ranking signal and does not change inclusion in Search.
Does it block other AI crawlers? No. It applies to Google only. Other providers publish their own bots and tokens, for example OpenAI’s GPTBot.
Sources
- Google's common crawlers (Google-Extended) – Google Crawling Infrastructuredevelopers.google.com
- An update on web publisher controls – Google Blog (Sep 28, 2023)blog.google
- AI features and your website – Google Search Centraldevelopers.google.com
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