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.
Gemini 3.7 Flash now powers some queries on AI Mode in Google Search. Google has posted a job listing for a Product Manager for Content Automation. Google Ads is testing super-sized review stars. Apple has added over 4,000 new IP addresses for Applebot. Microsoft Advertising is testing displaying larger images in the Bing sponsored results. Google is testing blue hyperlinks in the ad descriptions within the sponsored results.
Search Engine Roundtable Stories:
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Google Search Using Gemini 3.7 Flash In AI Mode
Late on Friday, Google's Robby Stein and Rajan Patel announced on X and X that Google Search is now using its latest AI model named Gemini 3.7 Flash. This model was first announced on Thursday, but Google made no mention of Search, it only said it is its "most intelligent workhorse model yet for coding and agents." -
Google Ads Tests New Review Layout With Supersized Star
Google Ads is testing a new layout for review stars for a product in the mobile sponsored results within Google Search. I am pretty sure I've seen this layout before, but it is not common and I don't think I covered it before. -
Apple Adds Thousands Of New IP Addresses For Applebot To Crawl From
Apple has added over 4,000 new IP addresses for Applebot, Apple's Siri and Apple Intelligence crawler, to crawl from. Specifically, there are now 18 of /24 CIDR ranges and 3 of /28, which totals 4,656 new IP addresses. -
Bing Testing Large Images In Sponsored Results
Microsoft Advertising is testing displaying larger images in the Bing sponsored results. These images are full block size images that take up a lot of space in the search results. -
Google Ads Tests Blue Hyperlinks In Ad Descriptions
Google is testing blue hyperlinks in the ad descriptions within the sponsored results. These are clickable, keyword rich, links in the ads, similar to what we saw last week with the keyword rich anchor text links but those were black links, not blue. -
Google Hiring A Product Manager For Content Automation
Google has posted a job listing for a Product Manager for Content Automation, I kid you not. The job posting was posted about two weeks ago and is available for two Google locations, Boulder, CO, USA and Pittsburgh, PA, USA. -
Google Color Sweater
Here is a photo of a new Googler, Noogler, wearing a Google colored sweater, standing outside of the Google London office.
Other Great Search Threads:
- New update #GoogleAds Got access to Google Ad's new AI Dashboard - beta today. Old dashboard still there if you're not ready to trust it yet (which I do). Testing it out this week., Govind Singh Panwar on X
- Today's Google Diff... Google Adds Watch-While Ads Format Google added documentation for "Watch-While Ads" under Demand Gen image ad formats. The note covers Watch Page placement, supported campaigns, manual closing and the 30-second inactivity timeout., Shauvik Kumar on X
- Arpan Banerjee discovered that Google support now gives the option to choose the campaigns in its form, Adriaan Dekker
- Google is rolling out its Gemini Spark assistant in the EU and it will be available for free users as well., Radu Oncescu on X
- Half the SEO industry is doing digital PR and calling it link building. The other half is doing link building and calling it digital PR., Jeremy Rivera on Bluesky
- Not sure what happened here with this YMYL site (health), but that's a huge drop on 7/8... The site does seem to be recovering now. Maybe a technical issue in early July that was causing problems? Hard to say at this point since rankings are returning. Interesting one for sure., Glenn Gabe on X
- We've seen a few Discover cards, albeit timidly, on Snapchat posts/topics, given that Google intended the platform to appear in "search profiles"., Damien Andell on X
Search Engine Land Stories:
- Gemini 3.7 Flash rolling out in Google Search
- The 4-step roadmap to AI agents for Google Ads
- Google Merchant Center for Agencies now supports up to 1,000 linked accounts
- Google Analytics adds custom conversion attribution windows
- Google sets AI Max migration timeline for Search campaigns
- LLM traffic converts differently — here’s what to do about it
- The latest jobs in search marketing
- Demand Gen shows why PPC can no longer hide behind intent
- The missing step in vibe coding: Verify what actually shipped
Other Great Search Stories:
AI & LLMs
- Anthropic set AI agents loose on the same task. They started a turf war., TechCrunch
- Apple has trained its own LLM for Apple Intelligence in China, Apple Insider
- Anthropic sees AI risks rising, no plan to release stronger "Model 2", Axios
- Empty shelves or lost keys? Recall is the bottleneck for parametric factuality, Google Research
- So You Want to Build an A.I. Star?, New York Times
- 1,000 AI Agents Started Agreeing Without Anyone Telling Them To, ScienceAlert
- How Claude's text watermarking works, Anthropic
- How Google is Making Private AI Practical with Homomorphic Encryption, Google Blog
Industry & Business
- OpenAI sheds senior execs in pre-IPO refresh, Axios
- How Big Tech’s Earnings Are Inflated by Other Tech Companies, Wall Street Journal
- OpenAI CFO Friar tells investors that enterprise bigger than consumer, CNBC
- Anthropic Revenue Ahead of IPO Surges Over 14-Fold in Second Quarter, Bloomberg
- OpenAI upheaval mounts as Sam Altman readies IPO push, Financial Times (Sub)
- Anthropic IPO valuation hinges on $190-200 billion 2028 revenue forecast, sources say, Reuters
- Nvidia Downsizes Plans for $250 Billion Guarantee of OpenAI Data Center, Wall Street Journal
Links & Content Marketing
- Claude Now Watermarks Everything It Writes. Here's What It Means for Marketers, Ahrefs
- Content Effort: The Google Ranking Feature Nobody Talks About, Zyppy
Local & Maps
- Google Maps On Android Auto Is Getting Its Biggest Update In Years, SlashGear
- Google Maps popular times graph is missing for some users, Android Authority
- I stopped trusting the fastest route in Google Maps. Here's why, Android Police
- I bought a car with Google built-in, but Apple Maps keeps winning, Android Police
- Don't Switch to Google Maps: Why Waze No Longer Showed Police Warnings, Autoevolution
Other Search
PPC
- Reddit Is Where Search & Social Collide. Is Your Paid Strategy Ready for the Impact?, PPC Hero
- Apple Maps is now taking ads, Apple Insider
- EU Political Ads Declaration Required in Google Ads, PPC News Feed
- Google Updates Demand Gen VTC Optimization, PPC News Feed
Search Features
- Gemini app gets 3.7 Flash, setting to turn off corner watermarks, 9To5Google
- I replaced Google Search on my phone to get instant answers without scrolling through ads, Android Police
- ChatGPT subscribers can now open and edit Google Drive files from inside the chat, 9to5Mac
SEO
- The Keyword Universe Was Always Smaller Than We Thought, Duane Forrester Decodes
- Google, Anthropic and OpenAI crawlers fetched dejan.ai's robots.txt 1,150 times and its llms.txt 4 times in 30 days, DEJAN
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