What we learned about AI, Discover and Shopping from Google during the Search Central Zurich 2025

12/10/25
Source: SEO Blog by Aleyda by Aleyda Solis. Read the original article

TL;DR Summary of Key Insights from Google Search Central Zurich 2023 Event

The Google Search Central Zurich 2023 event highlighted crucial updates on AI integration, Google Discover, and Google Shopping. Google emphasized that SEO fundamentals remain essential even with AI-driven search evolutions. High-quality, authoritative content is vital for lasting success on Discover, while schema.org and new Merchant APIs are key to optimizing Google Shopping performance.

Optimixed’s Overview: Essential Takeaways from Google Search Central Zurich 2023 for SEO and E-commerce

1. AI and SEO: Navigating the Future of Search

Google confirmed that AI advancements will increase the diversity of search queries, with 15% of searches being new daily. Despite AI-powered features, SEO fundamentals remain indispensable, debunking myths around SEO-free AI optimization (GEO). Structured data continues to be critical, especially for authoritative information in Shopping.

  • AI Overviews: No new Search Console features announced yet, but AI data is integrated within existing tools.
  • Measuring impact: Focus on user behavior signals like CTR and impressions, combining Search Console data with Google Analytics for insight.
  • LLM.txt files hold little significance from Google’s perspective.

2. Google Discover: Trust, Quality, and User Focus

Discover prioritizes user trust by promoting high-quality, inspirational, and authoritative content. Google combats clickbait, spam, and low-value AI-generated content with long-standing spam-fighting systems and feed improvements.

  • Content creators should optimize for niche interests and avoid over-reliance on Discover traffic, as excessive dependency is risky.
  • User-generated content and video remain valuable but must maintain quality standards.
  • Google’s policies emphasize transparency and compliance to sustain trust.

3. Google Shopping: Leveraging Schema.org and Merchant API

Schema.org markup is fundamental, acting as the “digital Rome” linking product, offer, and organizational data. Google plans expanded support for promotional data and AI-related fields.

  • Avoid client-side rendered JavaScript (CSR JS) for Shopping schema due to crawling and caching limitations.
  • The new Merchant API replaces the Content API with enhanced product management features, real-time notifications, and integrations like YouTube Shopping.
  • Speed and transparent shipping information are crucial to reduce cart abandonment.

Final Thoughts: Focus on User Experience and Holistic SEO

Google encourages SEOs to prioritize user needs over chasing every new trend. Building a trusted brand, diversifying traffic sources, and addressing both page- and site-level signals are critical for sustained success. Technical fixes alone don’t guarantee quality; a comprehensive, user-first approach remains the best strategy.