Google’s John Mueller confirms core updates impact the search engine’s AI-powered overviews.

In a recent LinkedIn discussion, John Mueller, Google’s Senior Search Analyst, confirmed that core algorithm updates indeed affect the search engine’s AI-powered overviews.

This statement offers new insights into how AI is increasingly integrated into Google’s search results.

Responding to a question on LinkedIn, Mueller clarified:

“These are a part of search, and core updates affect search, so yes.”

This aligns with observations within the SEO community, where the sources used in AI overviews appear to shift following major algorithm updates.

Understanding AI Overviews

Google introduced AI-generated overviews in US search results just a few months ago.

These overviews utilize a specialized version of Google’s Gemini AI to create concise answers at the top of search results, synthesizing information from various websites.

The Role of Core Updates

Core updates are broad changes to Google’s search algorithms and systems, typically rolled out several times a year.

These updates aim to enhance the quality of search results by reassessing how content is evaluated and ranked.

The latest core update, which began on August 15, is still in the process of rolling out. Google advises waiting until the update is complete before assessing its full impact.

Moving Forward

As Google continues to integrate AI into its search features, there’s a growing need for transparency regarding how core algorithm updates affect these AI-driven elements.

While Mueller’s confirmation sheds some light on the issue, many questions remain. Specifically, there’s uncertainty around what factors influence content’s inclusion in AI overviews and whether these differ from those affecting regular search result rankings.