Welcome to this week’s Pulse: Updates affect how you measure AI search visibility, whether you can opt out, and how the completed core update reshaped rankings.
This is what matters to you and your work.
Google Adds AI Search Controls and Reports to Search Console
Google is testing two new Search Console features for AI search visibility. A toggle lets you control whether your site appears in AI previews and AI mode. Dedicated performance reports show how your URLs appear in Search and Discover’s AI features.
Highlights: Reports cover impressions, pages, countries, devices and dates with hourly granularity. Click data is not included. Google says it works with website owners to decide which metrics to add next. Both features are rolling out to a subset of UK websites first.
Why it matters
Until now, AI-driven visibility was baked into standard Search Console data with no way to isolate it. The new reports give you a dedicated view of which pages appeared in AI responses and in which countries.
Impressions tell you how often your pages appeared, but not whether someone clicked on them. This gap has been the central question in AI research measurement for over a year. This launch doesn’t close it yet.
What SEO Professionals Say
In a post on LinkedIn, Glenn Gabe, president of G-Squared Interactive, wrote:
“AI reports coming to GSC! Great! No click data. NOT great.”
Read our full coverage: Google tests AI search reports in Search Console
UK regulator demands Google let publishers opt out of AI search
The UK’s Competition and Markets Authority has imposed a conduct requirement on Google as part of its digital markets regime. Publishers will be able to opt out of having their content used in AI search features.
Highlights: Google should allow websites to opt out of AI previews and AI mode, as opting out will not harm their position in regular search results. Google must also allow publishers to opt out of content being used to train AI models. They have nine months to comply
Why it matters
This is the first time a regulator has required the separation of participation in AI features from standard search indexing. Publishers have wanted this since the launch of AI Overviews. The previous only option also removed them from standard code snippets.
UK publishers now have a regulatory framework for controls that Google voluntarily provides elsewhere. The CMA says it will announce further measures regarding Google’s search activities in the coming weeks.
What research professionals say
In an article on LinkedIn, Stuart Forrest, former global SEO director for publishing at Bauer Media, wrote:
“The CMA announced a victory for publishers in AI search, but it’s a victory for Google.”
Todd Davies, doctoral student in competition law at University College London, wrote:
“In my opinion, the ability to unsubscribe is little more than a consolation prize for publishers. »
Read our full coverage: Google to allow websites to opt out of AI search features in UK
Google’s May 2026 Core Update Complete After Volatile Rollout
Google’s May core update rolled out on June 2 and lasted for 11 days.
Highlights: Third-party tracking tools showed high volatility at several points during the deployment. Google’s guidance suggests waiting at least a week after a major update completes before analyzing data.
Why it matters
The update is the fourth confirmed entry on Google’s search health dashboard this year. That’s about one confirmed leaderboard event every six weeks so far.
Some practitioners reported regaining traditional rankings while losing visibility in AI-generated responses from the same update. This division means checking both surfaces, not just the organic positions.
What SEO Professionals Say
In a LinkedIn post, Aleyda Solís, SEO consultant and founder of Orainti, job:
“Suitability for source type mattered more than authority alone.”
Danielle Pardoe, AI Marketing and Ecommerce Specialist, Founder of Infinity1 and TradieM8, commented:
“We’ve seen customers recover traditional leaderboards but still lose AI answer placements because of the same update.”
Read our full coverage: Google’s May Core Update Complete After Volatile Rollout
Google launches search profiles for creators
Google has launched Search Profiles, a customizable page that brings together a creator’s YouTube channels, social accounts and links in one place in Google Search.
Highlights: Creators must have at least 100,000 subscribers on YouTube, Instagram or X to be eligible. TikTok requires 300,000. Search profiles are currently only available in the United States. Claiming a profile can trigger the creation of a knowledge panel or improve an existing panel.
Why it matters
The profile also serves to connect people with more content from the websites they follow. When you follow a publisher through their profile, you can see more of their content in Discover.
The 100,000 subscriber minimum excludes most independent creators and small publishers. This threshold limits functionality to established accounts, at least at launch.
Read our full coverage: Google launches search profiles for creators with 100,000 subscribers
Topic of the Week: AI Search Visibility Begins to Get Infrastructure
For over a year, two questions have defined AI search for publishers. How do you know if you are there and can you control if you are there?
This week we provided answers in two directions. Google has started rolling out dedicated AI performance reporting and testing an opt-out option in Search Console. The UK has imposed a legal obligation on Google. Between them, the infrastructure for managing your presence in AI searches has started to move from idea to reality, although the scope of the tools is still limited.
Top stories of the week:
More resources:
Featured image: PeopleImages/Shutterstock
