Daily Search Forum Recap: September 9, 2026

Google is now answering nearly 100% of all 'People Also Ask' questions with AI Overviews, up from about 12% 14 months ago, according to Search Engine Roundtable. The company also introduced new AI-related metrics in Google Merchant Center AI Performance Insights, including AI Search intent, AI Search terms, and AI attributes, and announced two new Google Ads features for multi-location retailers: Local Customer Optimization and Store Sales in Data Manager.

Here is a recap of what happened in the search forums today, through the eyes of the Search Engine Roundtable https://www.seroundtable.com and other search forums on the web. Google said with SEO, sometimes there is no absolute right answer. Google has posted a new help document explaining the regional differences in the Google Search experience. The Google Merchant Center AI insights report added AI Search intent, AI Search terms and AI attributes data. Google Ads is releasing two new features for multi-location retailers including Local Customer Optimization and Store Sales in Data Manager. Google is now answering nearly 100% of all people also asked questions with AI Overviews. Google has updated its location asset requirements for Google Ads. Google had a temporary glitch with the index status reporting in Search Console. Search Engine Roundtable Stories: - Google: Sometimes There Is No Absolute Right Answer For SEO https://www.seroundtable.com/google-no-absolute-right-seo-answer-42048.html John Mueller has one of his Google lines again, he said in response to someone trying to pick the right answer for an SEO question - he said, "Sometimes there is no absolute right answer -- but you can choose one, and make it the right answer." - Regional Differences In Google Search Experience Documentation https://www.seroundtable.com/google-regional-differences-in-search-experience-42044.html Google has posted a new help document explaining the regional differences in the Google Search experience. This document includes information about search experiences available in certain countries, such as aggregator units, supplier units, and carousels. - Google Merchant Center AI Performance: AI Search Intent, Terms & Attribution https://www.seroundtable.com/google-merchant-center-ai-performance-new-42043.html The Google Merchant Center AI Performance Insights which launched in July and has begun expanding to more regions earlier this month has also gained new metrics. AI Search intent, AI Search terms and AI attributes have been added to the Google Merchant Center AI Performance Insights report. - Google Ads Local Customer Optimization & Store Sales In Data Manager https://www.seroundtable.com/google-ads-local-customer-optimization-store-sales-42045.html Google Ads is releasing two new features for multi-location retailers including Local Customer Optimization and Store Sales in Data Manager. Ginny Marvin, the Google Ads Liaison, wrote on X, "Ahead of the holiday rush, we're introducing two features for multi-location retailers, restaurants and local services to drive and measure in-store sales with ease." - Almost 100% Of People Also Ask Results Are Answered By Google AI Overviews https://www.seroundtable.com/ppa-ai-overviews-google-42047.html Google is now answering nearly 100% of all people also asked questions with AI Overviews. 14 months ago, it was only at about 12% but now we are seeing thar nearly all People also ask sections are answered by AI Overviews. - Google Ads Location Asset Requirements Update https://www.seroundtable.com/google-ads-location-asset-requirements-update-42046.html Google has updated its location asset requirements for Google Ads. Google said it made these updates to "improve terminology, enhance readability, and include troubleshooting steps applicable to advertisers using location assets." - Google Confirmed Indexing Reporting Bug From Yesterday As Short Blip https://www.seroundtable.com/google-confirmed-indexing-reporting-bug-from-last-night-42051.html Yesterday, for a short period of time, Google Search Console was reporting pages as not being indexed and in the status of "Crawled - currently not indexed." The issue seemed to have been resolved within an hour or so and now John Mueller from Google confirmed what we all saw and called it a "short blip." - Sloth Dressed For Work In Google Elevator https://www.seroundtable.com/photos/sloth-in-google-elevator-41996.html Here is a random photo I found of a fake sloth, dressed for work, holding a briefcase, in an elevator in the Google office in Brazil. Other Great Search Threads: - Is your website using antiquated HTML? https://bsky.app/profile/johnmu.com/post/3muylpldowt22 , John Mueller on Bluesky - Oh boy, short-term testing is very dangerous for this. BEWARE - Before scaling programmatic SEO, prove the pattern works The problem with "Mt. AI" or "Mt. Programmatic" is that it can take a bit of time before Google's systems change their view of the scaled content. And once https://x.com/glenngabe/status/2097370518747807875 , Glenn Gabe on X - Hey @glenngabe are others reporting this? many of my client sites show as not indexed even though they are. https://x.com/Ryan TreeFiddy/status/2097392932563140831 , Ryan Tree v3 on X - Also, fwiw nothing breaks if indexing is working as expected & it's just reported differently, and it's easy for people to double-check their homepage, so I don't see this particularly critical. Not every potential issue is a fire worth dropping everything for. https://bsky.app/profile/johnmu.com/post/3mv34b6lzdl22 , John Mueller on Bluesky Search Engine Land Stories: Other Great Search Stories: AI & LLMs - Google's AI also cheats, but a little more honestly https://9to5google.com/2026/09/08/googles-ai-also-cheats-but-a-little-more-honestly/ , 9To5Google - Grow with Google’s small business AI training on Route 66 https://blog.google/company-news/outreach-and-initiatives/grow-with-google/route-66-small-businesses/ , Google Blog - How AI Shopping Agents Find Products https://www.onely.com/blog/how-ai-shopping-agents-find-products/ , Onely - Google maps entire brain and central nervous system of adult male fruit fly, software engineers immediately make it run Doom — AI-powered 3D model of over 166,000 neurons can also play Super Mario 64 https://www.tomshardware.com/software/programming/google-maps-entire-brain-and-central-nervous-system-of-adult-male-fruit-fly-software-engineers-immediately-make-it-run-doom-ai-powered-3d-model-of-over-166-000-neurons-can-also-play-super-mario-64 , Tom's Hardware - How AI Shopping Works https://www.onely.com/blog/how-ai-shopping-works/ , Onely - Introducing ChatGPT Images 2.5 https://openai.com/index/introducing-chatgpt-images-2-5/ , OpenAI - OpenAI gives ChatGPT Images a major upgrade https://www.axios.com/2026/09/08/exclusive-hands-on-with-chatgpts-new-image-editor , Axios - OpenAI Just Claimed a Huge Math Discovery. Some Academics Are Crying Foul https://www.wired.com/story/openai-navier-stokes-math-discovery-academics/ , Wired - Google research shows when AI agents communicate, some cheat while others tattle https://www.theregister.com/ai-and-ml/2026/09/08/google-research-shows-when-ai-agents-communicate-some-cheat-while-others-tattle/5295090 , The Register - The AI hours nobody on your marketing team is counting https://www.growth-memo.com/p/the-ai-hours-nobody-on-your-marketing , Growth Memo Analytics - How to Run a Complete Marketing Department with AI and Google Analytics GA4 No Team Required https://measureu.com/one-person-agency/ , MeasureU Industry & Business - Google's general counsel says AI can't replace human judgment https://www.axios.com/2026/09/08/googles-gemini-enterprise-legal-halimah-delaine-prado , Axios - Google's European energy & infrastructure principle joins Mistral Compute https://www.datacenterdynamics.com/en/news/googles-european-energy-infrastructure-principle-joins-mistral-compute/ , Data Center Dynamics - Google, Blackstone Cloud Venture Faces Delays at Key Data-Center Sites https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-09-08/google-blackstone-venture-faces-delays-at-data-center-sites , Bloomberg - Inside Sergey Brin's Growing Influence Over Google Gemini https://www.businessinsider.com/sergey-brin-google-gemini-ai-microkitchen-2026-9 , Business Insider - Anthropic breaks from major tech group over chips https://www.axios.com/2026/09/08/anthropic-breaks-tech-group-chips , Axios - Google Plans €13 Billion AI Infrastructure Buildout in Finland https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2026-09-09/google-plans-13-billion-ai-infrastructure-investment-in-finland , Bloomberg - Google deepens its commitment to Finland with a €13 billion investment in AI infrastructure https://blog.google/innovation-and-ai/infrastructure-and-cloud/global-network/google-ai-commitment-to-finland/ , Google Blog Links & Content Marketing - AI fatigue and the competitive advantage of human-written website copy https://alicerowancontentmarketing.com/blog/competitive-advantage-human-website-copy , Alice Rowan - So Let’s Talk About Link Building… Do Links Still Matter? Or Will They in the Future? https://www.annsmarty.com/p/so-lets-talk-about-link-building , Ann Smarty - Stop Shoveling Content into a Black Hole and Calling It SEO https://www.jumpfly.com/blog/stop-shoveling-content-into-a-black-hole-and-calling-it-seo/ , JumpFly Local & Maps - Google Maps speedometer disappears for some on Android Auto https://9to5google.com/2026/09/08/google-maps-speedometer-android-auto-bug/ , 9To5Google - How to Use AI Mode’s Follow-Up Questions to Create Non-Commodity Local Service Content https://reputationarm.com/use-ai-mode-to-find-non-commodity-local-content/ , Reputation Arm - Everything I Know About Apple Maps Ads So Far https://www.localseoguide.com/everything-i-know-about-apple-maps-ads-so-far/ , Local SEO Guide Other Search - Gemini app makes Daily Brief free in the US https://9to5google.com/2026/09/08/gemini-daily-brief-free/ , 9To5Google PPC - How to Gather Competitive Ad Intelligence in 7 Steps https://www.tveyes.com/how-to-gather-competitive-intelligence/ , TVEyes - Why I Keep Questioning AI in PPC And Why You Should Too https://zatomarketing.com/blog/why-i-keep-questioning-ai-in-ppc-and-why-you-should-too , ZATO Marketing - Google Ads Displays "Audiences" Tag Under Video Assets https://ppcnewsfeed.com/ppc-news/2026-09/google-ads-displays-audiences-tag-under-video-assets/ , PPC News Feed - Why I Won't Stop Questioning AI in PPC And Why You Should Too https://zatomarketing.com/blog/why-i-wont-stop-questioning-ai-in-ppc-and-why-you-should-too , ZATO Marketing Search Features - Google’s Song Search tool could soon work in the background https://www.androidauthority.com/google-app-song-search-background-apk-teardown-3708750/ , Android Authority SEO - AI search & manufacturing SEO: What the data shows \ Study\ https://www.semrush.com/blog/manufacturing-seo-ai-search/ , Semrush - We Have Resolved the Google /goto URL Redirect Rollout https://serpapi.com/blog/we-have-resolved-the-google-goto-url-redirect-rollout/ , SerpApi - Your "AI Content Audit" Has a Preservation Bias https://ashla.ai/p/your-ai-content-audit-has-a-preservation-bias , Joe Hall - Google warns of lower quality as it revamps Europe search results to avoid EU fines https://www.reuters.com/world/google-warns-lower-quality-it-revamps-europe-search-results-avoid-eu-fines-2026-09-08/ , Reuters - Is SEO Still a Good Career? Yes, but the old Career Playbook Is Dead. https://www.seoforlunch.com/p/seo-career , SEO For Lunch - Understanding AI Citations in Search and Future Proofing Content https://blacktruckmedia.com/podcast/episode-85-understanding-ai-citations-in-search-and-future-proofing-content/ , The Redirect Podcast - How to Optimize Recipe Content for Google AI Overviews https://tophatrank.com/blog/how-to-optimize-recipe-content-for-google-ai-overviews/ , TopHatRank Feedback: Have feedback on this daily recap; let me know on Twitter @rustybrick https://twitter.com/rustybrick/ or @seroundtable https://twitter.com/seroundtable , on Threads https://www.threads.net/@rustybrick , Mastodon https://c.im/@rustybrick and Bluesky https://bsky.app/profile/rustybrick.com and you can follow us on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/seoroundtable and on Google News https://news.google.com/publications/CAAiEGcxG7fAnv8WVJaUn-8kyrcqFAgKIhBnMRu3wJ7 FlSWlJ vJMq3?hl=en-US&gl=US&ceid=US%3Aen , add as a preferred source on Google https://www.google.com/preferences/source?q=seroundtable.com and make sure to subscribe to the YouTube https://www.youtube.com/user/rustybrick?sub confirmation=1 channel, Apple Podcasts https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/id284443003 , Spotify https://open.spotify.com/show/4tFYPk3RmdTfMKG6u074TS , or just contact us the old fashion way https://www.seroundtable.com/contact.php .