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 Search new ad layout is driving accidental clicks on search ads. Google and Bing are indexing Grokipedia, the AI-generated online encyclopedia, like crazy. Raptive sued Google saying they use its data to cheat them, it can cost billions. Reddit said its search traffic is flat, AI is not a traffic driver and 50% of its traffic comes from Google. John Mueller of Google issued a PSA saying verify your cloud provider with Search Console.
Search Engine Roundtable Stories:
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The New Google Search Ad Layout Is Causing Accidentally Clicks
A few weeks ago, Google launched a new ad layout with the large "Sponsored results" label that groups numerous ads under that one label, and then sticks a "Hide sponsored results" button after you have already seen the ads. Well, it is leading to accidental ad clicks based on what I am reading and hearing across the industry. -
Google PSA: Verify Your Hosted Cloud Provider Host In Search Console
Google's John Mueller posted a PSA yesterday, reminding SEOs and developers to verify the host name of cloud providers they are using to host images, videos, and other content. Specifically, you should use a DNS CNAME to the bucket, then verify with DNS with Search Console. -
Publishers Say Google Used Their Data to Cheat Them, Raptive Lawsuit
Raptive, an advertising-sales company representing thousands of websites (content publishers), filed a 93-page complaint against Google in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York. The suit says "Google has carried out a sophisticated, anticompetitive, and deceptive scheme for well over a decade" by "manipulating auctions for ad space across the Internet." -
Reddit: Search Traffic Flat, AI Not Traffic Driver & 50% Of Traffic Is From Google
Reddit announced earnings late last week and it boggles me how people love this stock. I am not a financial expert of analysis but Reddit has been saying for some time that 50% of its traffic comes from Google Search. Reddit also said on this Q3 earnings call that its search traffic is flat and that AI is not a traffic driver, at least not yet. -
Google & Bing Are Indexing Grokipedia - AI Generated Wikipedia / Encyclopedia
Grokipedia, an AI-generated online encyclopedia launched a week ago with over 800,000 AI-generated pages, and both Google and Bing have already indexed hundreds, if not thousands, of those AI-generated pages. -
Clippy Walking Around Microsoft Office
On Thursday of last week, the night before Halloween, Clippy was walking around the Microsoft office. Here is a photo of it from Michael Schechter, VP of Bing and Microsoft, that he posted on X.
Other Great Search Threads:
- I am going to say this again... I think we are in for a very rough Q4. All the signs are very much there. Would love to be very wrong about this, but I've been at this a long time., Julie F Bacchini on X
- I just love this single purpose domains/sites. This one is golden. stopcitingai.com, Stefan Judis on Bluesky
- Like I've always said, it works until it doesn't. Spammy site I've been keeping an eye on since it recently surged. Started tanking the other day. Now doesn't rank for any of those core queries anymore. Actually, it's deindexed. Poof, Glenn Gabe on X
- I'm not sure what you're showing in the screenshot, but it seems expected that different search features use things differently. Especially very visible elements like video previews / thumbnails seem like the kind of thing where you wouldn't want to do th, John Mueller on Bluesky
- We wanted to share more information about Gemma in AI Studio: First, to clarify the distinction between our AI products. Our Gemma models are a family of open models built specifically for the developer and research community., News from Google on X
- AdSense Earnings and Observations - November 2025, WebmasterWorld
- From Ilya’s deposition— • Ilya plotted over a year with Mira to remove Sam • Dario wanted Greg fired and himself in charge of all research • Mira told Ilya that Sam pitted her against Daniela • Ilya wrote a 52 page memo to g, toucan on X
- I helped turn the thing you left for dead into what should be the largest non-profit ever. you know as well as anyone a structure like what openai has now is required to make that happen., Sam Altman on X
Search Engine Land Stories:
- The latest jobs in search marketing
- Google VP: SEO and AI search optimization have ‘a lot of overlap’
- Google’s Robby Stein: Ads aren’t going away in AI search
- The rise and fall of FAQ schema – and what it means for SEO today
- How to monitor your website’s performance and SEO metrics
Other Great Search Stories:
AI & LLMs
- Perplexity signs multi-year deal to use Getty's images for AI-powered search, Reuters
- Perplexity’s new AI tool aims to simplify patent research, The Verge
- Reddit CEO says chatbots are not a traffic driver, TechCrunch
- Study: How do stadium sponsorships impact localized AI visibility?, Seer Interactive
- The Man Who Invented AGI, Wired
- Microsoft Plays ‘Me Too’ Again to OpenAI on AI Browser, Bloomberg
- Google pulls Gemma from AI Studio after Senator Blackburn accuses model of defamation, TechCrunch
- How AI Browsers Sneak Past Blockers and Paywalls, Columbia Journalism Review
- New Version of Siri to 'Lean' on Google Gemini, MacRumors
- The great AI buildout shows no sign of slowing, Reuters
Industry & Business
- Big Tech Is Spending More Than Ever on AI and It’s Still Not Enough, Wall Street Journal
- Microsoft earnings suggest $11.5B OpenAI quarterly loss, The Register
- AI turned Google Cloud from also-ran into Alphabet’s growth driver, Reuters
- Google and Microsoft Face Less AI Spending Risk Than Meta, Amazon, The Information
Links & Content Marketing
- 18 Lessons Coaches Learned From Big Content Marketing Mistakes, Forbes
- 7 Game-Changing Content Marketing Trends to Watch, Small Biz Trends
Local & Maps
- Is the Google real estate lead generation program real?, SEO Savvy Agent
- Whitespark's Guide to the Perfect Small Local Business Website, Whitespark
SEO
- How Entity SEO Supports Brand Authority in AI Search, Schema App
- GSC Freeze: How LLM Scraping Disrupts SEO Metrics Today, RS Websols
- Survival Strategies for Publishers in Google’s Current Search Environment, Women in Tech SEO
- The New Optimization Stack: Where SEO Meets AI Retrieval, Duane Forrester Decodes
- The Old Rules are Dead (ChatGPT Scrapes Google and Leaks Your Prompts), Quantable Analytics
- Why I'm Shutting Down Lorelight (And What It Taught Me About GEO), Grow With Less
PPC
- Developers Get Instant Production Access with Google Ads API’s Explorer Tier, PPC News Feed
- Transparency Center Now Covers Political Ad Spend and Creatives, PPC News Feed
- Goodbye, Legalese. Hello, Easy Privacy Fixes?, AdExchanger
Search Features
- Google says Search AI Mode will know everything about you, Bleeping Computer
- Gemini in Google Docs can now use your linked files as a source of truth for writing help, Chrome Unboxed
- Google Translate adding Advanced’ or ‘Fast’ model picker, 9to5Google
- Forget Gemini: Google Home users just want the basics to work again, Android Authority
Other Search
- 6 places where Google’s Gemini is still missing, Android Authority
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