GEO news
What is changing in AI search. Each item is a summary with a link to the outlet that reported it.
Google's November core update lands as ChatGPT opens click data to businesses
Google has started rolling out its November 2026 core update, with ranking volatility also recorded around 8 and 9 November.
Source: Search Engine Roundtable
Google AI Overviews image generation returns for some searchers
Google appears to be restoring image generation inside AI Overviews for some users, months after the feature was pulled. The capability was first announced in July and paused in August following controversy.
Source: Search Engine Roundtable
Google pushes Gemini 4 Hydrogen into Search during November core update
Google has rolled out what it calls its biggest model update to Search so far, Gemini 4 Hydrogen, and did so in the middle of a core update.
Source: Search Engine Roundtable
Google's AI Overviews: fewer sources cited, more shopping queries covered
Google's AI Overviews have shifted substantially through 2026, with the average number of sources cited per answer falling from a spring peak of 16.31 in April to 7.66 in October, roughly half the earlier level and close to the 6.82 recorded in November 2024.
Source: SE Ranking Blog
Google makes Gemini 4 Hydrogen the default model in AI Mode worldwide
Google has made Gemini 4 Hydrogen the default model in AI Mode for every user worldwide, starting today.
Source: Search Engine Journal
Google swaps in Gemini 4 Hydrogen as the default model for AI Mode
Google has made Gemini 4 Hydrogen the default model in AI Mode and the model behind its hardest AI Overviews questions, rolling it out globally to all Search users.
Source: Search Engine Roundtable
Google tests moving AI Overview source icons to the bottom
Google is testing a version of AI Overviews that places the source icons at the very bottom of the generated answer. The icons had previously sat at the top of the overview, directly above the citations, and in this test hovering over them reveals the full list of cited sites.
Source: Search Engine Roundtable
Google expands AI Overview definitions by default
Google is now showing AI Overviews for definition queries fully expanded by default, so the answer fills the visible portion of the results page without a click on "Show more". Web results sit below the fold and require scrolling.
Source: Search Engine Roundtable
Google AI Overview Local Pack Dropping Action Buttons, Photos & Reviews
Google is testing a stripped-back version of the AI Overview local pack that removes action buttons, reviews, photos, addresses and opening hours. The change makes it harder for searchers to call a business, get directions or visit its website directly from the search results.
Source: Search Engine Roundtable
ChatGPT search reaches 20% of Google's query volume, OpenAI says
OpenAI has put ChatGPT's search volume at roughly a fifth of Google's, a figure that lands alongside a wider set of changes to how AI answers surface brands and ads.
Source: Search Engine Roundtable
Ahrefs ranks the 25 most prolific AI search researchers
Ahrefs has published a ranking of the 25 people producing the most original research on AI search, built by screening a longlist of 87 candidates and counting the studies each had published since 2023.
Source: Ahrefs Blog
