Here is a recap of what happened in the search forums today, through the eyes of the Search Engine Roundtable and other search forums on the web.
Google is testing replacing the local pack in the search results with AI Overviews, maybe. Google is testing a "lowest in 30 days" label in the Google Shopping ads. Google's AI crawler does render JavaScript using the shared Web Rendering Service. Google is testing double the limit for the search themes for Google Ads PMax campaigns. Google launched Google Tag Gateway for advertisers. Google AdSense soon won't let you block video game ads.
Search Engine Roundtable Stories:
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Google Tests Replacing Map Local Pack With AI Overviews
Google may be testing replacing local pack at the top of the Google Search results for "near me" related queries with an AI Overview. So instead of showing a map and the three or so local listings, Google is showing an AI Overview with some local information. -
Google Shopping Ads Tests Label For Lowest In 30 Days
Google is testing a new label or green text on its shopping ads to tell you when the price of that item is low. The label says "Lowest in 30 days," which says the price is the lowest it has been in the past month. -
Google's AI Crawler For Gemini, Google-Extended, Does Render JavaScript
Google's AI crawler, Google-Extended, the crawler it uses for Gemini and other related AI services, does render itself and can render JavaScript, just like Googlebot, Google's main web search crawler. -
Google Ads PMax Search Themes Tests 50 Limit (Up From 25)
Google Ads search themes for Performance Max campaign has a limit of 25 search themes per asset group. Well, according to Thomas Eccel, Google is testing doubling that limit to 50 search themes per asset group. -
Google Tag Gateway For Advertisers & More
Google announced a number of new tag, analytics and data strategies on Friday including a new Google tag gateway for advertisers. Google tag gateway for advertisers allows you to run your Google tags, be it client-side or server-side through your own website infrastructure, such as a content delivery network (CDN), load balancer, or web server. -
Google AdSense To Not Allow You To Block Video Games Ads
Google AdSense will remove the ability to block the video games category of ads. So if you previously told AdSense not to show ads related to video games on your site or in your apps, that block will soon not be respected. -
Custom Google Lovesac
Here is a custom Google branded Lovesac, a sofa company that makes adjustable and reconfigurable couches and sofas. You can see the Google logo on it, it looks like it is old, because it is the old Google logo.
Other Great Search Threads:
- AI Mode on the *home screen*. I shared about this yesterday, and now I have the option in my settings. I can add an AI Mode shortcut to the main search bar on my home screen. Again, Google is pushing users to engage with AI Mode. Ne, Glenn Gabe on X
- At week 2 of the DOJ search remedies trial, we saw more evidence of how the government’s proposals would break helpful products like Search and Chrome, harm consumers, risk privacy, and undermine America’s tech le, Google Public Policy on X
- It looks like Google no longer has a max word count when searching. It used to be 32 words max, but now it only breaks when the max URL limit is reached. A change brought on by AI I'm guessing., Patrick Stox on X
- Just keep in mind it can be difficult for us to know the exact date of a document for a variety of reasons. There’s no standard way that all site owners use to indicate a publishing or republishing date. Some provide no dates at, Google Search Liaison On Bluesky
- Google [star wars] and may the fourth be with you!, Rajan Patel on X
- Grok and Gemini have been running toe-to-toe since the Grok iOS app launched., Similarweb on X
- I'll be in London (Westminster) for work on Thursday, 8th of May, and I'll have about two hours to kill before heading back to Switzerland. If you want to grab coffee and chat about search and ai, leave a comment., Gary Illyes on LinkedIn
Search Engine Land Stories:
- The latest jobs in search marketing
- Google Ads expands Search Themes limit in Performance Max
- Advertisers react to Google’s Performance Max Channel, Asset & Search Insight update
- Google launches first-party data setup, iOS app conversion tracking tools
- Want to beat AI Overviews? Produce unmistakably human content
- How does ChatGPT conduct local searches?
- How Model Context Protocol is shaping the future of AI and search marketing
Other Great Search Stories:
Analytics
Industry & Business
- Court Hearing Offers A Sneak Peek Of Potential Remedies For Google’s Ad Tech Monopoly, AdExchanger
- Google advertising antitrust remedies trial set for Sept. 22, judge says, CNBC
- Google Open to Sharing Real-Time Bids With Rivals, But Rejects Breakup, AdWeek
- Google will seek to avoid ad tech spinoff in antitrust case, Reuters
- Google’s Chief Health Officer Is Retiring, Forbes
- Google’s Cloud President And Workspace Leader Is Leaving, CRN
- US Presses for Google to Share Data by Citing Yahoo Japan Deal, Bloomberg
- US to demand Google break up its online advertising business, Financial Times (Sub)
- Google Can Train Search AI With Web Content After AI Opt-Out, Bloomberg
- Four vehicles catch on fire at Google parking lot in Mountain View, Mountain View Voice
- Microsoft's Bing share is now 12.2%, Google drops to 79.10%, and it's not due to ChatGPT, Windows Latest
Links & Content Marketing
- How to Write Great Content for Search (that delivers), Harry Clarkson-Bennett
Local & Maps
- CarPlay Users Giving Up on Google Maps for Waze, Bad News After the Latest Update, AutoEvolution
- The Complete Guide to Google Business Profile Video Verification, ReputationArm
Mobile & Voice
- App deep links: connecting your website and app, Google Search Central Blog
- Gemini app redesigns desktop side panel with infinite history, 9to5Google
- Google AI Mode gets one-tap search, smooth iOS glow, 9to5Google
- Google Plans to Roll Out Gemini A.I. Chatbot to Children Under 13, New York Times
SEO
- Could Google Block Rank Trackers?, Chris Green
- OpenAI’s Latest Patents Point Straight to Semantic SEO, Go Fish Digital
- How to Combine Email Marketing and SEO for Full-Circle Growth, Design Modo
- Is Search Is Splitting? Here's A Report on 13 Months of Google vs. ChatGPT (for SEOs), Momentic
- The State of Ecommerce SEO in 2025: How to Win in Today’s Product SERPs, Aleyda Solis
- Ecommerce SEO for AI Search: How to Optimize for Product Discovery in LLMs, Marketing Aid
PPC
- How conversion APIs improve campaign performance, Hallam
- TurboTax Quietly Starts Advertising on Perplexity, AdWeek
- What Is a Google Partner – Illuminating Truth and Deception, Igniting Business
- April 2025 update to Display & Video 360 API, Google Ads Developer Blog
- Exact Match vs. Broad Match in Google Ads, Jyll Saskin Gales
- Marketers grapple with Google as a platform in flux, Digiday
- Search Ads Showing Identical Placements Across Pages, PPC News Feed
Other Search
- Expanding on what we missed with sycophancy, OpenAI
- One of Google's recent Gemini AI models scores worse on safety, TechCrunch
- Emerging news providers can apply for the new Global News Gaps Project., Google Blog
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