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Google I/O has made something official that marketers have been quietly dreading: AI-generated answers are now the front page of search. The ten blue links that entire industries built their strategies around are no longer the point of entry. Most brands have little to no visibility into how AI is summarizing them to potential customers, which means years of search optimization work may now be pointed at a target that has fundamentally moved.
Meanwhile, Meta is pushing further into the subscription economy, rolling out paid tiers for Instagram, Facebook, and WhatsApp under a unified brand called Meta One. The company is also testing AI and creator-focused offerings within that umbrella. It is a significant bet that users will pay directly for platforms they have always used for free, and a clear signal about where Meta sees its revenue ceiling.
And from the edge of the observable universe, the James Webb Space Telescope has spotted a supermassive black hole that appears to have formed before the galaxy surrounding it. That sequence challenges the prevailing model of how galaxies and black holes grow together, and astronomers say it could require a serious rethink of cosmic formation timelines.
Big questions in search, in social, and in space itself. Keep surfing. Tech Beat out.
