SEO Pulse: AI Shopping, GPT-5.1 & EU Pressure On Google
The Pulse covers the latest from Google and Open AI and the EU investigation into Google’s site reputation abuse enforcement
About
Matt G. Southern, Senior News Writer, has been with Search Engine Journal since 2013. With a bachelor’s degree in communications, Matt specializes in gathering details, checking facts, and making complex subjects easy to understand. In addition to writing articles, Matt oversees strategy development for SEJ’s news department.
Articles
Google Reminds Websites To Use One Review Target
Google updated its review snippet documentation to clarify that each review or rating in structured data should point to one clear target, reducing ambiguity.
Google Defends Parasite SEO Crackdown As EU Opens Investigation
Google responds to EU investigation into its site reputation abuse policy, defending enforcement against parasite SEO as essential for protecting search quality.
Google Adds AI Shopping Tools Across Search, Gemini
Google is rolling out AI shopping updates across Search and Gemini, including conversational queries, agentic checkout, and AI-powered local business calling.
OpenAI Releases GPT-5.1 With Improved Instruction Following
OpenAI released GPT-5.1 Instant and Thinking models with improved instruction following and adaptive reasoning.
Google Launches Ads Advisor & Analytics Advisor Globally
Google announced Ads Advisor and Analytics Advisor, built on Gemini, rolling out to all English-language Google Ads and Google Analytics accounts in early December.
Google Launches Structured Data For Merchant Shipping Policies
Google Search supports sitewide shipping policy markup, letting you surface delivery costs and transit times in results without relying on Merchant Center.
YouTube Debunks 24-48 Hour Upload Delay Recommendation
YouTube’s Rene Ritchie says the recommendation system relies on audience behavior that only begins once a video is public. Waiting 24–48 hours offers no benefit.
Report Links Original Research to Higher B2B ROI
A survey of B2B leaders finds 97% view thought leadership as critical, with original research outperforming AI content for building trust.
Google AI Overviews Appear On 21% Of Searches: New Data
New Ahrefs analysis shows where AI Overviews show up in Google: more often on questions and longer queries, less on time-sensitive news and local searches.
Meta Projected $16B From Scam Ads, Internal Docs Show
Meta’s internal documents indicate the company projected $16 billion in revenue from ads for scams and banned goods, creating competition for legitimate advertisers.
Google Warns Against Relying On SEO Audit Tool Scores
Google published guidance emphasizing context-driven technical SEO audits over tool-generated scores, explaining when high 404s are normal.
Google Finance Gets AI Deep Search & Prediction Market Data
Google Finance adds Deep Search for complex research, prediction markets data from Kalshi and Polymarket, and enhanced earnings tracking.
Google Performance Max Adds Waze Ads And Channel Reporting
Google adds Waze ads to Performance Max for store goals in the U.S. and rolls out channel performance reporting, with search partner reporting coming soon.
Perplexity Bets $400M On Snapchat To Scale AI Search Adoption
Perplexity will pay Snap $400 million to integrate its AI answer engine into Snapchat’s chat interface, with rollout starting next year.
Google Deprecates Practice Problem Structured Data In Search
Google will deprecate practice problem structured data in January and clarifies Dataset markup is only for Dataset Search. Book actions remain supported.
YouTube Separates Organic & Paid Metrics In Channel Analytics
YouTube now lets creators filter analytics metrics by organic versus paid traffic, ending confusion about how advertising affects channel performance.
Google AI Mode Starts Rolling Out Agentic Booking In Labs
Google’s AI Mode is starting to roll out agentic booking for restaurants, event tickets, and wellness appointments to eligible U.S. Search Labs users.
Report: Apple To Lean On Google Gemini For Siri Overhaul
Apple has reportedly selected Google to power the next generation of Siri through a partnership neither company plans to publicly acknowledge.
GEO Platform Shutdown Sparks Industry Debate Over AI Search
Benjamin Houy shuts down Lorelight, arguing AI search doesn’t need stand-alone GEO tools. The decision sparks debate over measuring assistant visibility.
Can You Use AI To Write For YMYL Sites? (Read The Evidence Before You Do)
Google’s YMYL standards reveal why AI-written health, finance, and legal content can’t match human expertise or credibility.
Google Q3 Report: AI Mode, AI Overviews Lift Total Search Usage
Google reports that AI features are adding searches rather than replacing them, pointing to more AI-led sessions and steady traffic flowing to sites.
Chrome To Warn Users Before Loading HTTP Sites Starting Next Year
Google Chrome will enable “Always Use Secure Connections” by default in October 2026, warning users before accessing public sites without HTTPS encryption.
Google Labs & DeepMind Launch Pomelli AI Marketing Tool
Pomelli, a Google Labs & DeepMind AI experiment, builds a “Business DNA” from your site and generates editable branded campaign assets for small businesses.
Trust In AI Shopping Is Limited As Shoppers Verify On Websites
An IAB report finds AI speeds discovery but adds steps, sending shoppers to retailers, search, reviews, and forums to verify details before buying.
Microsoft Locks In OpenAI Partnership Through 2032
Microsoft and OpenAI signed a deal extending Microsoft’s rights to OpenAI models through 2032, confirming a 27% stake worth $135B
YouTube Introduces ‘Ask Studio’ AI For Channel Analytics
YouTube launched Ask Studio, an AI assistant in YouTube Studio that analyzes channel data to surface comment insights, performance analysis, and content ideas.
OpenAI Flags Emotional Reliance On ChatGPT As A Safety Risk
OpenAI is telling companies that “relationship building” with AI has limits. Emotional dependence on ChatGPT is considered a safety risk, with new guardrails in place.
Google Uses AI To Group Queries In Search Console Data
Google announced Query groups in Search Console Insights. The AI feature clusters similar search queries, surfaces trends, and shows which topics drive clicks.
Perplexity Responds To Reddit Lawsuit Over Data Access
Reddit sued Perplexity in over access to Reddit content. Perplexity says it summarizes posts with citations and does not train on them.