Dumb Money Live The Google Trends Glitch Nobody's Talking About
Aug 29, 2025
Google Trends is showing unusual anomalies that have alarmed long-time investors. The hosts dissect how AI-driven searches might be skewing results, impacting advertising metrics. They also analyze unexpected spikes in Lululemon searches during summer and discuss Nvidia's earnings amidst China risks. Anticipation builds around Apple's new iPhone lineup. The conversation touches on the long-term effects of AI on content creators and the importance of transparency from Google regarding automated searches.
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Google Trends Showing Unusual Anomalies
- Chris Camillo says Google Trends has been a core alpha source for 18 years and now shows wild anomalies this summer.
- He warns that the data looks broken and may be unusable for investors until fixed.
LLMs May Inflate Google Search Activity
- Chris and Jordan report LLMs like ChatGPT now tap into Google search and can generate many queries per user session.
- Those automated queries may inflate search volumes and click patterns in ways Google hasn't disclosed.
Third-Party APIs Can Mask Automated Queries
- Jordan explains SERP API scrapes and proxies Google queries so developers and LLMs can programmatically access search results.
- Such middlemen can mask automated traffic, complicating attribution and trend accuracy.