Daily Search Forum Recap: May 28, 2026

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 AI Mode and AI Overviews gain preferred sources, new carousels and the highly cited label expands. Google strongly warns against buying or manipulating brand mentions for AI search. Google is testing new sitenames and favicon layouts in search. Google Ads to delete short term performance data on June 1st. Google Merchant Center has a new AI performance insights report. ChatGPT ads is rolling out conversion-optimized campaigns for some advertisers.

Search Engine Roundtable Stories:

• Google AI Mode & AI Overviews Add Preferred Sources & New Carousel
  Google is officially rolling out preferred source labels within AI Mode and AI Overviews and adding a new carousel to AI Mode and AI Overviews, as well. Plus, Google said the highly cited label is expanding to more search results (which is not specific to AI Mode and AI Overviews).
• Google Strongly Warns Against Manipulating Mentions For AI
  Gary Illyes from Google reportedly said at the Search Central Live Shanghai 2026 event on May 15th that he and Google strongly warns against buying or manipulating mentions brand mentions to try to show up in the AI responses, AI Overviews and AI Mode.
• Google Tests New Sitename & Favicon Layout In Search
  Google is testing shifting the sitename and favicon in the search results around, where it is on one line with the favicon, then a bold sitename and then the URL, followed by the rest of the snippet; the title and description and sitelinks. Typically, the favicon spans two lines covering the sitename one the first line and URL on the next line.
• ChatGPT Ads Conversion-Optimized Campaigns Coming June 5th
  OpenAI sent out an email to some early advertisers offering them early access to conversion-optimized campaigns. Conversion-optimized campaigns are going to be available to some advertisers starting on June 5, 2026.
• Google Ads To Delete Short Term Performance Data June 1st
  As you know, Google updated its Google Ads data retention policy recently, which changed how long it will store some of its shorter-term performance data. Specifically, the data hourly, daily, and weekly reporting data...
• New Google Merchant Center AI Performance Insights
  Google is rolling out a new AI performance report within Google Merchant Center named AI performance insights. Google said the "AI performance insights can help provide you with a view into your brand's performance on AI surfaces and how you can optimize your product data to improve your performance on these AI powered experiences."
• Sundar Pichai Life on Film At Google I/O
  Google's CEO, Sundar Pichai, was handed a disposable camera by Life on Film, to take photos throughout the Google I/O event. Then that company put together this short video of those photos.

Other Great Search Threads:

• Google is sitting on a massive clothing and home textiles opportunity, Trung Phan on X
• On June 18th, Search Central Live will be coming to Italy!, Google Search Central on LinkedIn
• Our new São Paulo Center of Engineering is officially open! Located within the IPT Open program and just steps from the University of São Paulo (USP), this multidisciplinary hub is where we’re empowering talented engineers t, Life at Google on X
• Settings-> Search Engine -> Change -> Bing, Michael Schechter on X
• Title links are always algorithmically generated, so there's no guaranteed "fix". There are a bunch of suggestions at thought., John Mueller on Bluesky

Search Engine Land Stories:

• OpenAI confirms conversion-focused ads are coming to ChatGPT
• Google AI Overviews & AI Mode gain preferred sources, plus new perspectives carousel and highly cited labels
• Google Ads will start deleting historical reporting data after set retention periods
• Google launches Real-Time Policy Reviews for faster ad approvals
• The micro-macro shift: How to measure AI visibility now that precision is gone
• The SEO-GEO gap: How AI search traffic differs from organic traffic
• How to get your Google Ads seen in AI Overviews
• Users behave differently in AI Overviews vs. AI Mode

Other Great Search Stories:

AI & LLMs

• Amazon starts selling its AI shopping technology to other retailers, CNBC
• Economic Futures in the Age of AI, OpenAI Foundation
• Google DeepMind CEO Demis Hassabis says we're close to AGI, Axios
• Google's AI Overview still can't spell, and the internet is very aware of it, Mashable
• Illinois Legislature passes historic AI bill that would require third-party safety audits, NBC News
• Introducing Google AI Threat Defense to help you outpace the adversary, Google Cloud Blog
• Users behave differently in AI Overviews vs. AI Mode, Growth Memo
• I think Anthropic and OpenAI have found product-market fit, Simon Willison

Analytics

• Private analytics via zero-trust aggregation, Google Research Blog

Industry & Business

• Apple, Google push for judicial oversight in Canada online safety bill, Reuters
• Google information security engineer charged with using inside information to make $1M on Polymarket, ABC News
• How Sam Altman fooled Sundar Pichai — and pushed Google into cannibalizing itself, Fortune
• Pine Island Google data center construction halted by court, FOX 9
• Big Subsidies for Google, Limited Water for Locals: The Dilemma of AI in India, Wall Street Journal

Links & Content Marketing

• The 4 Stages of Content-Led Marketing Maturity, Content Marketing Institute

Local & Maps

• Drive with Ziggy Marley on Waze., Google Blog
• Google Maps and Waze are not the same—here’s the differences that matter, How To Geek

SEO

• Google just broke SEO. Here’s what replaces it., TechCrunch
• I tested Claude SEO Agents so you don't have to, Assertive Media
• SEO vs. AEO: What Levers Can You Pull to Influence Rankings?, Intergrowth
• How to Translate SEO KPIs into Business Impact, Women in Tech SEO
• Publishers bet on platforms for revenue to offset Google declines, Digiday
• Why Structured Data Matters More Than Ever in AI SEO, Sitebulb
• Your SEO strategy is optimized for a search engine that no longer exists., TechCrunch

PPC

• How to Combine Multiple Amazon Ads Accounts Into One Client-Ready Report, Optmyzr
• AI in Online Advertising: 5 Key Trends from May 2026, JumpFly

Search Features

• An update on Google’s “disregard” issue, The Verge
• Improving AI labels for viewers and creators, YouTube Blog
• Why Google's AI can't spell Google (or anything else), TechCrunch

Other Search

• Google’s AI Search is pushing users away, and Bing has a rare opening it has not seen in years. What happens next is up to Microsoft., Windows Central

Feedback:

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