We hope you are in good health. Here are some of the major SEO news updates of the week that you need to know:
Search Related News and Updates from Major Search Engine
Google Adds AI Image Generation to AI Overviews
Google is rolling out AI-powered image generation within AI Overviews, allowing users to create custom images directly from text prompts using its Nano Banana model. The company is also redesigning Google Images with a personalized, real-time gallery to make visual search more interactive, inspiring, and tailored to users’ interests.
Google Shares Guidance on First Link Priority & Link Obfuscation
Google’s John Mueller responded to a discussion about first link priority and advised against hiding or obfuscating internal links solely for SEO purposes. He said he wouldn’t expect such changes to produce a visible ranking impact and suggested using proper HTML links and adjusting the page’s HTML order, if needed, instead of replacing links with buttons or JavaScript-based navigation.
Google Says Long-Term A/B Tests Won’t Trigger SEO Penalties
Google’s John Mueller said that long-running A/B tests, even those lasting a year or more, do not automatically result in SEO penalties or ranking demotions. However, he noted that frequently changing content can make crawling, indexing, and performance monitoring more challenging, so site owners should continue following Google’s recommended A/B testing best practices.
Google Business Profiles Expands “Collected Info” Feature
Google is rolling out the new Collected Info section in Google Business Profiles, allowing business owners to review information gathered through Google’s automated calls, texts, chats, or WhatsApp messages. The feature also lets businesses see when and how the information was collected and delete inaccurate details, providing greater transparency and control over profile updates.
PPC Related News and Updates from Major Platforms
Google Merchant Center Introduces AI Performance Insights
Google Merchant Center is rolling out a new AI Performance Insights report in beta, giving eligible merchants visibility into how their products perform in AI Mode and AI Overviews. The report includes metrics such as share of voice, competitor visibility, query trends, and shopping intent insights to help merchants optimize product listings for AI-powered search experiences.
Google to Enable Local Inventory Ads by Default for Shopping Campaigns
Google has announced that Local Inventory Ads (LIAs) will be turned on by default for eligible Shopping campaigns linked to Merchant Center accounts with the Local Inventory Ads add-on enabled. Advertisers who want to keep separate budgets for online and in-store inventory should update their Inventory filter settings before August 31, 2026, as the existing Local products setting will be removed.
Google Updates Shopping Ads Policies and Expands Market Availability
Google has banned Shopping ads for prediction market contracts and related products in Michigan and New York, effective July 13, 2026, due to policy changes. At the same time, Google has expanded Shopping ads and free product listings to several additional European countries, giving more merchants access to its shopping surfaces.
Google to Merge Shopping Ads and Free Listings Policies
Google announced it will combine the Shopping Ads and Free Listings policies into a single Shopping policy in September 2026 to simplify documentation and improve clarity for merchants. The update is organizational only—Google confirmed it does not introduce new restrictions or stricter policy enforcement for product listings.
