After losing share to the likes of Perplexity, ChatGPT, and Grok, the OG search giant is, perhaps surprisingly, regaining ground.

Google announced Query groups in Search Console Insights. The AI feature clusters similar search queries, surfaces trends, and shows which topics drive clicks.

And, despite what you may think, Google is not the only player. New search engines that are popping up across the Web strive to make searches faster, smarter, more personal and more visually interesting.

Google Search Console’s performance report is stuck and has not shown an update in the main report since Sunday, October 19th. Google confirmed the issue and said it will catch up.

The AI search engines also arguably have an advantage in being able to weave pre-trained “internal knowledge” in with data culled from cited websites. That was especially true for GPT-4o with Search Tool, which often didn’t cite any web sources and simply provided a direct response based on its training.

Recently, Chrome added a security setting to protect users when they visit unfamiliar sites. Now Chrome is also making it easier for you to keep control of your search engine settings. If another app or software changes your default search engine without permission, Chrome shows a clear warning.

And because Google controls so many layers of the stack—hardware, data centers, models, and consumer products—it can absorb the cost of AI adoption in a way startups and rivals can’t. It doesn’t have to rent the future on someone else’s platform; it’s already building it.

The regulator has given it "strategic market status", opening the door to what it calls "proportionate interventions."

DuckDuckGo is an alternative search engine that prioritizes its users' personal privacy and security.