GEO news
What is changing in AI search. Each item is a summary with a link to the outlet that reported it.
Reddit blames Google AI Mode for a million lost search referrals a week
Reddit's search referrals fell by more than 1 million a week on average during October, after a third quarter in which search traffic was already down meaningfully. The company told shareholders the decline accelerated late in the quarter and has carried into the current one.
Source: Search Engine Journal
Google tests query refinement bubbles above AI Overviews
Google is testing query refinement bubbles at the top of AI Overviews in Search. Tapping a bubble does not run a new search for that refined query. Instead it opens AI Mode, with the text of the bubble used as the prompt.
Source: Search Engine Roundtable
Google May Be Pulling Citation Cards From AI Overviews
Google appears to be testing the removal of the citations card that normally sits alongside AI Overviews on desktop search results.
Source: Search Engine Roundtable
Alphabet shares drop 13% as AI spending and slower Search growth unsettle advertisers
Alphabet shares fell about 13% on Thursday after third-quarter results showed Search revenue growing more slowly while the company ramps up spending on AI. Capital expenditure reached $51.36 billion in the quarter, with free cash flow at negative $9.07 billion.
Source: Search Engine Journal
Google says AI Mode users ask questions three times longer
People using Google's AI Mode are asking questions roughly three times longer than before, and are working through decisions earlier in the search process, according to Google Ads product liaison Ginny Marvin and search vice president of data science and user experience research…
Source: Search Engine Journal
Google opens Gemini and Search to third-party apps with Connected Apps Platform
Google has launched a Connected Apps Platform that lets any business or developer submit an app for use inside Gemini and Google Search. The public preview is in beta for US developers who join a waitlist, and Google has not said when it will widen availability.
Source: TechCrunch AI
Google blames lower AI Mode monetisation for slowing Search growth
Alphabet's Google Search & Other revenue rose 12% year on year to $63.35 billion in Q3 2026, down from 19% growth in Q1 and 17% in Q2, and essentially flat on the previous quarter's $63.27 billion.
Source: Search Engine Journal
Google expands AI Mode ads to ten more countries and adds multiturn ads in the US
Google is widening advertising inside AI Mode, its conversational search experience. Ads are now live in Australia, Canada, India, Kenya, Malaysia, New Zealand, Nigeria, Pakistan, the Philippines and Singapore, with Brazil, Mexico and the United Kingdom due in the fourth quarter.
Source: Search Engine Roundtable
Google takes AI Mode ads international as Search growth slows
Google is expanding advertising inside its AI Mode search experience to international markets for the first time, alongside multi-turn ads and AI Mode in the US.
Source: TechCrunch AI
Google opens Connected Apps Platform preview for Search and Gemini
Google has opened a preview of its Connected Apps Platform, letting developers build apps that run inside Google Search and the Gemini app. The company described it as a unified way for app developers to bring their capabilities directly into both surfaces.
Source: Search Engine Roundtable
AI Overviews now appear on more than 80% of Google searches
AI Overviews now appear on more than 80% of Google searches, up from roughly 50% in June last year and about 15% the year before, according to data from Semrush, SE Ranking and seoClarity.
Source: Search Engine Roundtable
Google AI Overviews citation cards begin showing AI-written summaries
Google appears to be testing or rolling out AI-generated summary snippets inside the citation cards that sit alongside AI Overviews in Search.
Source: Search Engine Roundtable
Google's Universal Cart goes live in Search and Gemini
Google has begun rolling out its Universal Cart in the United States, days after announcing it. Shoppers now see a cart icon at the top right of the search results page, and product listings carry "Add to cart" buttons that drop items straight into the cart.
Source: Search Engine Roundtable
Three new studies question the ROI of AI search optimisation
Three new studies on AI search have raised doubts about whether investing in generative engine optimisation or AI SEO pays back, arriving in a week when Google's search results showed further ranking volatility with no official core update announced.
Source: Search Engine Roundtable
ChatGPT sends 0.62% of the traffic Google organic does, 100-site study finds
ChatGPT traffic is a rounding error next to Google organic, according to an analysis of 12 months of GA4 data across 100 websites and more than 145 million sessions.
Source: Search Engine Journal
ChatGPT sends less than 1% of Google's traffic
ChatGPT referral traffic amounts to just 0.62% of the sessions Google organic search sends to websites, according to an analysis by Marie Haynes covering 100 sites, 12 months of GA4 data and more than 145 million sessions.
Source: MarTech
