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 rankings are volatile again and heating up. Plus, the Search Console performance report and page indexing reports are still delayed. Google Ads now supports WhatsApp support notifications. Google Discover added summarize, follow up, and dive deeper with AI Mode links. Microsoft is testing a new search bar with advanced tools.
Search Engine Roundtable Stories:
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Google Search Ranking Volatility Heats Up December 3rd & 4th
I am seeing some signs of a Google Search ranking update and intense volatility that kicked in late yesterday. The SEO community started chattering about it over the past several hours and some of the tools are showing a spike in volatility with the Google search rankings. -
Google Search Console Performance Reports & Page Indexing Delayed Again
I know, we just reported the page indexing report within Google Search Console is very delayed, about two weeks. Well, it is still delayed two weeks, I thought it would catch up by now, but it only got three days of data and then stalled again. And the performance reports are now 32 hours behind, when it is normally just a few hours behind. -
Google Discover Gains AI Mode Features
Google is adding more AI features to Google Discover, specifically pushing people from articles in Google Discover into Google AI Mode. When you click on an article from Google Discover and then click on the three dots at the top right of the screen, you are given three options to go into AI Mode. -
Google Ads WhatsApp Support Notifications
Google Ads may be testing the ability to subscribe to support updates via WhatsApp. Google has rolled out a new option to get real-time support case updates directly on WhatsApp, at least some folks are seeing this. -
Bing Tests New Search Bar With Advanced Tools Menu
Microsoft is testing a new search bar with a more powerful tools menu button. This tools menu is larger, has a plus sign and gives you options to click search with your voice, search with an image and even make an image. -
Jukebox At Google Office
At the Google Bayview office, Google had/has this jukebox there. It might be a prop for an event or maybe something Google just has. Hard to tell these days with the amount of disposable income Google has.
Other Great Search Threads:
- There are now a number of "llms.txt directory" sites now, so search engines & other crawlers will find them and crawl them as random text files. Looking at log files won't tell you if they're used as more than a random text file. It's tricky nowadays., John Mueller on LinkedIn
- Publisher profiles are back in one of my accounts! After going missing for a while, I can tap on the publisher name and favicon in Discover to visit their profile. You can then follow that publisher, view their socials, read about them,, Glenn Gabe on X
- As a child, it was my dream to grow up to create content for Google to use in AI answers for free so they could sell ads, Cyrus SEO on X
- Small Business Bulletin - December 2025 - Finish Strong, Plan Big, Google Business Profile Community
Search Engine Land Stories:
- Google’s Year in Search 2025: These trending topics spiked big
- Google AI Mode sends traffic on 69% of transactional queries: New data
- Meta: Native Reels ads can lift purchase intent 5.3x
- AI Max undermines match-type control
- Google home page search bar upload feature goes directly to AI Mode results
- Google Daily Hub: Anatomy of an overambitious system shaping the future of search
- How to plan and manage paid media budgets in an AI-driven world
Other Great Search Stories:
AI & LLMs
- ChatGPT Search Queries Have Tripled In Length, Nectiv
- Silicon Valley Builds Amazon and Gmail Copycats to Train A.I. Agents, New York Times
- A Pragmatic Vision for Interpretability, AI Alignment Forum
- ChatGPT's weakness in AI search, SISTRIX
Analytics
Industry & Business
- Google Wants Justices To Pause Petition Pending Epic Deal, Law360
- OpenAI’s Foundation to Donate $40.5 Million in Grants to US Nonprofits, Bloomberg
- We’re announcing new health AI funding, while a new report signals a turning point for health in Europe., Google Blog
Links & Content Marketing
- How To Innovate Without Self-Destructing, Content Marketing Institute
- Signal Vs. Noise: Predicting Future Impact Of Content Marketing, Search Engine Journal
- Digital PR in 2026: Why it's more important than ever, Hallam
Local & Maps
- Drive with “SpongeBob” on Waze, Google Blog
- This free navigation app works offline better than Google Maps ever did, Make Use Of
SEO
- How Google’s August 2025 Spam Algorithm Update Impacted Local SEO [Case Study], Sterling Sky
- How to Score Entry-Level SEO Jobs with No Experience, SEOjobs
- Networking in SEO Means Building Real Relationships, The SEO Community
- Which AI Visibility Tracker is right for me? The AI Search Maturity Model, Seer Interactive
- Why is technical SEO still important?, Blue Array SEO
- Do Self-Promotional “Best” Lists Boost ChatGPT Visibility? Study of 26,283 Source URLs, Ahrefs
- SEO Skills You'll Need in 2026 [Survey Results], Lumar SEO Industry Report
PPC
- Case Study: How We Maximized Google LSA for Service Brands, Location3 Media
- Google Ad Buyers Are (Still) Being Duped By Sophisticated Account Takeover Scams, AdExchanger
- How to Fix Keyword Cannibalization and Stabilize Rankings, Audience Key
- Price Competitiveness Insights & Advanced Price Filters by smec, Smarter Ecommerce
Search Features
- Gemini gets web redesign with new dark theme, ‘My Stuff’ folder , 9to5Google
- How to stop internet results in Search for Windows 11, Windows Central
Other Search
Feedback:
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