AI & SEO Trends Update – 7th April 2026

The past two weeks, since our last update, have been shaped by two significant Google updates: a spam update and a broad core update.

At the same time, AI-led discovery continues to expand across platforms such as Google Maps and Bing Webmaster Tools. Together, these changes reinforce a broader shift in how visibility works online.

Search performance is no longer just about where a page ranks. It increasingly depends on how content is assessed for quality, how it is surfaced within AI-powered experiences, and how easily platforms can interpret and use it.

Key Takeaway - Search Quality Is Back in Focus

Google has placed a clear emphasis on search quality.

The March 2026 spam update rolled out globally on 24 March and completed on 25 March. Shortly after, the March 2026 core update began on 27 March and may take up to two weeks to fully roll out.

Together, these updates highlight an important point. Visibility can shift for very different reasons. One may be linked to spam prevention, while the other reflects a broader reassessment of relevance and usefulness.

Trend Direction

• Google’s quality systems are highly active:  A spam update and a core update landed within the same week. That is unusual and signals increased focus on quality and content standards.

• Spam updates and core updates serve different purposes: Spam updates target content or tactics that fall outside Google’s guidelines. Core updates are broader and focus on improving the relevance and usefulness of search results.

• AI discovery continues to expand beyond search: Google’s Gemini-powered Maps update is another sign that users are increasingly discovering information within conversational product experiences, not just traditional search results.

• AI visibility reporting is becoming more tangible

  Microsoft’s AI Performance report continues to provide clearer insight into how and where content is cited across Bing and Copilot experiences.

Update Since Our Last Report

March 2026 Spam Update Completed Quickly

Google’s March 2026 spam update began on 24 March at 12:00 PT and completed on 25 March at 07:30 PT. It was rolled out globally and across all languages.

The rollout completed in under 20 hours, which is unusually fast for a spam update.

That speed does not reduce its impact. Spam updates are designed to limit the visibility of low-quality or manipulative content. Any sharp drops during this window are worth reviewing against Google’s spam policies, rather than being treated as standard ranking fluctuation.

March 2026 Core Update Remains Ongoing

Google’s March 2026 core update began on 27 March and may take up to two weeks to complete. It is the first broad core update of 2026.

As of 7 April, the update is still listed as ongoing. Any ranking changes should therefore be interpreted with care until the rollout has fully settled.

Unlike spam updates, core updates do not indicate that anything is wrong. They reflect a broader recalibration of how Google evaluates and ranks content, with the aim of surfacing more relevant and useful results.

New Developments

Google Maps Becomes a Discovery Platform

Google has introduced Ask Maps and Immersive Navigation, bringing its Gemini AI model more deeply into Google Maps.

Ask Maps allows users to ask natural language questions about places, routes and stops. Immersive Navigation provides a detailed 3D view of journeys, using Street View and aerial imagery to visualise buildings, crossings and surrounding environments.

This matters because discovery is moving further into Google-owned platforms.

For local businesses, this increases the importance of:

• Accurate and complete business information
• Strong and consistent review profiles
• Clear, structured data across Google platforms

AI Visibility Reporting Continues to Develop

Microsoft’s AI Performance reporting remains one of the clearest indicators of where search reporting is heading.

The dashboard shows when a site is cited within AI-generated answers across Microsoft Copilot, Bing AI summaries and selected partner integrations. It includes metrics such as total citations, average cited pages and grounding queries.

The key takeaway is not just the tool itself, but what it represents. AI visibility is becoming measurable, rather than something that needs to be inferred from traffic alone.

What to Look Out For

Over the coming weeks, you may notice continued movement as the core update settles, particularly across content-heavy areas of your site.

Pages with weaker differentiation or limited value may see increased volatility. In contrast, spam-related impacts are more likely to appear as sharper drops tied specifically to the 24–25 March window.

You may also see more discovery happening within platforms, rather than through traditional clicks, as AI continues to shape how users find and interact with information.

Find out more here: https://befoundonline.com/blog/march-2026-google-updates-spam-and-core-update-explained

What We’ll Be Monitoring

Over the coming weeks, we will be tracking:

• Whether the March 2026 core update fully completes and what patterns emerge post-rollout
• Whether visibility changes are linked to spam policy issues or broader core update reassessment
• Continued expansion of AI-led discovery across platforms such as Maps, Bing and Copilot
• Opportunities to improve content clarity, authority and structure so it can be more easily interpreted and surfaced by both search engines and AI systems