This week, Google quietly rolled out a new experimental feature called Web Guide. It lives in the Search Labs section and, for now, only affects results in the “Web” tab. However, if this moves into the main search experience, it will impact how people find content.
Web Guide uses a pared-down version of Gemini to sort search results into topic-based categories. Instead of the standard list of blue links, you’ll see clusters like “How-to articles,” “Buying guides,” and “Personal stories,” each with a short AI-generated description and a handful of handpicked links. It doesn’t summarize the web; it restructures it.
By grouping links into labeled sections, Google is creating a new layer between the search bar and the destination page. We won't just be ranking for keywords anymore; we'll be trying to earn placement in a category Google invented on the fly.
This has implications. If your content isn’t clear about what it is and who it’s for, you won’t show up where you want to. Worse, you may not show up at all. Web Guide favors intent, not just relevance. Intent, as interpreted by a large language model, is a moving target.
For now, Web Guide is opt-in. It’s not driving traffic, but it’s a preview of a future path search may take. If you’re responsible for discoverability, this is an early warning. It's time to clean up your headers and make every page's intent obvious and make sure an LLM could understand why the page matters. Because if this is where our friends in Mountain View take us, Google won’t just find your content – it will decide where it belongs.
As always, your thoughts and comments are both welcome and encouraged. -s
Shelly Palmer is the Professor of Advanced Media in Residence at Syracuse University’s S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications and CEO of The Palmer Group, a consulting practice that helps Fortune 500 companies with technology, media and marketing. Named LinkedIn’s “Top Voice in Technology,” he covers tech and business for Good Day New York, is a regular commentator on CNN and writes a popular daily business blog. He's a bestselling author, and the creator of the popular, free online course, Generative AI for Execs. Follow @shellypalmer or visit shellypalmer.com.
